The Wanderer (A creepypasta fanfic)
by cometflare17
Summary: Some say she's a reaper. She walks the Earth with the purpose to catch those who have sinned in their life and deliver them to the devil. Some say she's an angle sent from Heaven to protect those who shine brightly. Others say she is a Wandering spirit looking for peace. Few know the truth. The truth, that she's a hunter, a monster. The Wanderer. (Possible Romance. Fair warning)
1. Chapter 1

_**Note: Italics are thoughts**_

The moon shone brightly above creating pools of light that bathed the earth below. The stars glowed brightly in the night sky giving off dreams of hope and prosperity for those who believed that anything was possible and dreams could come true. Except for one. Walking down an empty highway was a seventeen year old girl named, Mallory. Mallory was a petite girl with tanish skin, black hair that drifted down to her shoulders and sharp, pale blue eyes. She wore a white button up shirt with a tyrian purple sweater vest, beige cargo shorts, brown hiking boots and she carried an old, scrappy blue backpack and a dark green duffel bag. Walking next to her was a cat and dog, Mayhem and Maniac. Her pets. They weren't really normal pets though, They were more like robots. Mallory had made them a few years ago, after she had lost her first cat and dog, and had programmed them with her memories of the original Mayhem and Maniac along with a few other things such as weapons, defensive protocols and a heating system so their joints wouldn't freeze over when they were in colder climates. Now Mallory wasn't your average girl as you could probably tell from the fact she had robotic pets but that's not what made her different from everyone else. She didn't believe in hope or dreams like some people, and agreed with those who had been struck by life in terrible ways and saw things how she did. Most of the time.

The road ahead of her was dark and sad looking in her opinion. A car or two would pass by every once in awhile, mostly ignoring them, but other than that it was just her, Maniac and Mayhem. She was fine with the fact that whoever passed by ignored them. She wasn't much for human contact unless she was in a town resting. It was the only time she ever put in the effort to communicate with another being that didn't rely on charging stations in order to live. Mallory's eyes wandered the road and landed on the forest surrounding them. The forest felt...off, to Mallory. She could tell it wasn't a normal place and her human instincts told her to stay away and never go in. But her non-human instincts told her that there was fun to have there. Of course that fun would have to wait until tomorrow because she needed to get to the next town soon. She was out of food and her pets needed to charge.

It took about two more hours of walking before the trio had made it to the next town, someplace in Ohio, she didn't bother to catch the name of. They started wandering around looking for a place to sleep when Mayhem had stopped, catching both Mallory's and Maniac's attention. "What is it kitty?" Mallory asked slightly annoyed by her delay of food and sleep. Mayhem lifted a paw and pointed at the Forest surrounding the town. Mallory looked in the direction her cat was pointing and saw them. A pair of dark, crazy eyes filled with blood lust that was watching them intently from a bush. Mallory just rolled her eyes and started walking again. "Who cares Mayhem let's just find a place to sleep." Mayhem completely ignored her and hunched down, stalking towards the eyes looking ready to pounce at any second. Mallory picked Mayhem up, the robotic cat squirming in her arms. "No put me down let me kill whatever it is!" Mayhem protested. Mallory only sighed and tucked him under her arm. "Seriously you're such a pain." Maniac watched the two of them, his tail wagging happily as he thought about a warm room and his charging outlet. Mayhem started biting Mallory's arm repeatedly. "Let go of me you impudent child! Just one bite out of the thing! I'm bored!"

"And I'm fucking tired after walking and camping for two weeks! I wanna find a motel or something and sleep in a bed, not to mention get some food! Not all of us run on electrical energy...AND STOP BITING ME!"

The eyes continued to watch, now sparking with interest.

Mallory had managed to find a motel but the place gave off a weird vibe. Like death happened here a lot. 'Then again it could just be the name.' Mallory thought glancing at the sign that read, BED AND DEAD MOTEL. Actually the DEAD was spray painted over the word breakfast. She scoffed and looked back at the place. 'This motel seems a little shady.' The outside of the motel was run down and scrappy looking. The roof was littered with trash, the parking lot had beer cans and cigarette studs everywhere and the brick walls were spray painted with all kinds of foul insults that would even get the president in trouble. Mallory snickered as she thought of the stupid, orange man that was their president, getting his mouth washed out with soap on national television. Maniac walked ahead of them and stood in front of a random room door. Mallory stared at him and knew exactly what he was about to say. "Maniac. The chances of us getting that room are slim. We literally just got here, there might not be any left." An old, raspy voice spoke up behind her with a deep chuckle. "Ah worry not child that room is empty." Mallory spun around and her fist was now inches away from an old mans face. The two stared at each other for a few moments when Mallory laughed nervously. "S-Sorry sir you just uh...you startled me." The old man let out another chuckle tipping an old baseball cap that sat atop his head rather loosely. "'It's alright good to know a pretty little lady like you knows some sort of defense. Your stance and posture were perfect and if you had hit me, I would have been knocked to the ground." Mallory rubbed her arm feeling a little embarrassed that she had almost hurt this defenseless yet seemingly kind old man. She noticed a small figure standing behind him and clutching his pant leg. It was a little boy, almost no older than nine. He had short blond hair and big sky blue eyes. He was a little pale and wore a green short-sleeved hoodie, brown shorts along with brown and white sneakers. When he locked eyes with Mallory, he immediately hid completely behind the old man who she noted was carrying a small plastic bag and had a walking cane. Mallory pointed at the little boy. " 'Scuse me for asking sir, but who's that?" The old man looked back at the boy. "Oh him? Why this is my adorable grandson Neil. He's eight about to turn nine in a couple of days. The name's Henry by the way. I'm the owner of this motel." Henry set down the plastic sack and held out a pale wrinkly hand. Mallory took it and gave a firm shake. "My name is Mallory. It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Henry. Little Neil." Neil peeked his head out a bit and blushed when he heard her say his name. She gave him a kind smile and he hid back behind Henry once more. Henry picked up the plastic bag and started walking to a small house that was connected to the side of the motel. "Please come inside. We'll get you a room and maybe some food." Mallory's stomach growled at the word food making Henry chuckle once again. "Sounds like you're hungry." Mallory smiled a little and started to follow, Maniac and Mayhem at her heels. A sudden feeling washed over Mallory. It was the feeling of being watched. She looked around and once again she spotted those crazy eyes and a shadowy figure peeking out from behind a tree. Mallory stared at him then slowly raised her hand and flipped him the bird sticking out her tongue. Henry called for her from the door and the three of them scurried over to the house, unaware of the being that Mallory just thoroughly pissed off.


	2. Chapter 2

(This is a big timeskip from the first chapter.)

Mallory laid on her temporary bed at the motel staring at the dark ceiling. Henry, the old man who owned and runned the place, decided that she could stay as long as she liked after she had explained she was a traveler and was planning on staying in town for a while. Of course she had to help with chores and things but she didn't really mind much since it was her only way to pay him back for his kindness. It was around 12:34 and she had decided to go to bed early but she couldn't sleep and instead had been tossing and turning up until that point, her expression showing she was deep in thought but also somewhat stressed, as if something has been bothering her.

It's been a month and a half since I got here and I have no leads as to where she could be. Is she alive? Is she even anywhere near me? Was she taken back? No...she couldn't have been taken back that place has been abandoned since that day. What if-

A sudden chill startled Mallory out of her mind and she sat up looking around. She spotted her window, which was wide open. A light breeze wafted through her window carrying the scent of alcohol and blood. This was a scent that was slightly familiar to her as it kept appearing over the last month. Mallory could never find its source but the stench of the alcohol always made her gag making her wish the person or thing it belonged to never existed. Mallory moved her sheets and slowly got out of bed. When her feet touched the bare wooden floor, she couldn't help but pull them back up. The floor was freezing! Mallory reached for her duffel bag which was sitting next to the bed and opened it up, pulling out a pair of fuzzy blue socks and slipping them on. Satisfied that these would keep her feet warm, she made her way over to the window and quickly shut it, shivering from the cold. "Jeez fall sucks on this side of the U.S." she muttered walking back to her bed. Something made her stop though. For some reason she had the sudden urge to turn on the light but felt that it wasn't the best idea. She thought for a moment then realized something which made her smile in excitement. Her entire stay here, she had never opened the window. Someone had snuck in. Someone was planning something. She was about to have some fun.

Mallory got down on her hands and knees and lifted up the bed sheet. Under the bed was her favorite, metal baseball bat. It was covered in all sorts of colorful drawings and stickers that she had gotten from her travels but it was also covered in blood. Mallory slowly pulled it out from under the bed and stood up, resting it across her shoulders. She kept the light off keeping her room dark, but that wasn't a problem for her. The light of the moon that streamed through her open curtains was all she needed in order to see. Her eyes scanned the room and landed on the closet which was cracked slightly. Her excited smile turned into that of a twisted grin. Mallory started to giggle uncontrollably. "Come out, come out wherever you are!" she called out happily. When Mallory got no response she giggled even more. "Do you think you have a choice? There is no choice...not this time." the end of the bat hit the floor and she slowly started walking towards the closet, dragging the bat behind her. Maniac and Mayhem were awake by this point and sat under the bed, watching intently as Mallory made her way to the closet.

Mallory stood in front of the closet and she gave a simple knock. "People shouldn't sneak into a girls room while she's trying to sleep. It makes one rather paranoid ya know? Makes it hard to sleep." a deep chuckle came from the closet and the door swung open. Standing there was a man. This man could have been no older than twenty and was obviously a psycho but his appearance to Mallory was simple enough and didn't really bother her. The man was deathly pale, with black hair and silver eyes and was at least 6 ft tall maybe a little shorter. He wore a white hoodie that was stained in red, black skinny jeans and black and white shoes. What stood out about the man was the never ending shit eating grin he wore from eat to ear. It looked as if someone had carved the smile into his cheeks. He also never seemed to blink and just stared at her. Mallory stared back, slightly annoyed by the taller male, and raised a brow. "Am I supposed to scream or...What? Like, dude, are you gonna come out of the closet or not?" the man, as if not hearing her, raised a kitchen knife, his eyes flashing with anger. He muttered, "Go to sleep." and with a crazy laugh the man swung his knife down aiming for her heart. Mallory took a step to the left, the knife grazing her arm instead. She then grabbed him by the back of his head and kneed him in the face. She heard a sickening crack and pulled away, watching as the man held his face in pain, blood dripping onto the floor. Mallory giggled and his eyes snapped towards her. "Wow...was that all?" the man let out an angry roar and lunged at her. Mallory, startled by his sudden action, swung her bat aiming for his head but missed and the two of them collided falling in a fumbling pile on the floor. The man was on top of her and was holding Mallory's hands above her head with one hand, his knife raised just above where her heart should be. Mallory stared up at him blankly and the man just waited for a reaction. Fear, crying, anger, just something from the girl. "Why are you doing nothing?" He asked seeming highly annoyed from not getting any reaction. Mallory blinked in surprise. "Am I supposed to do something? Oh...I see now. Crazy killer in my room wants me to cry and beg for my life! News flash, not gonna happen. Why you ask? Well that is a great question Mister PaleAss! Because you're not gonna kill me." the man stared at her in surprise from her response, a quiet chuckle escaping his lips. Then he started to softly laugh which soon turned into an all out crazy guffaw, his chest and shoulders shaking from how hard he was laughing. Mallory just rolled her eyes in annoyance and sighed, waiting for him to stop laughing. This is such a drag. Mallory started rolling back and forth a bit but could only move so far as her hands were still above her and the man was still on top of her. The man watched her in amusement, his laughing fit finally over. "I guess you realized that you have no chance." Mallory said nothing as a whistle, on a chain around her neck, flew up and landed perfectly in her mouth. I didn't think this would actually work...cool. The man raised a brow and reached to pull the whistle away when she blew on it. No sound came out making him laugh. "What is that thing for anyway? Trying to alert someone? Not working is it runt?" Mallory spat the whistle out and glared harshly as she started hollering at the man in pure anger. "WHO YOU CALLING SO SMALL YOU HAVE TO LOOK AT THEM THROUGH A MAGNIFYING GLASS?!" The man stared at her in confusion and in her tiny fit of rage, Mallory kicked the man in the gut and pushed him down. His knife flew out of his hand and Mallory jumped on top of him, catching the knife handle as it fell. She was PISSED. Mallory HATED being called short.

Mallory raised the Knife above her head as blood lust pooled off of her in waves. She was tired of this man and she didn't get to have her fun. She swung down, aiming for his throat but the man caught her hands and struggled as he tried to keep the blade from piercing his skin. Mallory smiled a little as she now realized she had him somewhat cornered. "Looks like you're about to die. So why not let go and just let me end you? What reason do you have to live?" she could clearly see the man was frowning even though he had that carved smile. This was obviously not going how he wanted. "I'm not letting a little bitch like you kill me. Besides, I do have a reason to live." in one quick motion the man punched Mallory in the face and pushed her back onto the floor, once again pinning her. "It's to kill." Mallory scoffed and headbutted him in the face and thrusting her hand into his left shoulder pushing him off. "That's a little stupid." The man growled and lunged at her once again.

The two of them rolled around punching and kicking trying to get the upper hand and the knife. After what seemed like forever, the man was finally on top and pinning Mallory down, the knife lying on the other side of the room. Both of them were breathing heavily and bleeding from all kinds of cuts they had given each other with the knife. The side of the man's head was also bleeding because at one point during the tussel, Mallory had grabbed her bedside lamp and started to beat the side of his head but he had managed to throw it out the window which was now broken. "You...are one stubborn Bitch." the man stated. Mallory barked laughed and smirked up at the man. "I could say the same about you. I've never met someone...who could pin me down this many times. But, while this has been fun…" Mallory bit his arm making the man scream in pain as blood sprayed from his new wound and onto her face. The man pulled his arm away and Mallory kneed him in the privates. She then twisted his arm and threw him off and jumped up, her fists raised. The man looked up at her holding his heavily bleeding arm. Sirens could be heard in the distance making his eyes widen. "Huh...well looks like I'm not killing you...yet." The man jumped to his feet and ran past her, grabbing his knife off the floor and jumping out the window. Mallory growled in frustration and followed, slamming open the front door and running out into the night. She stopped just outside of the parking lot and saw him running into the forest that was yards away. She was about to run after but a familiar voice stopped her from doing so. "Mallory!' Mallory turned and saw Neil running towards her in his pajamas and barefoot. Mallory watched as he threw himself at her crying heavily. "You're okay, you're okay!" he cried over and over, tears streaming down his face. Mallory smiled and held him close. "Of course I'm okay. What makes you think I wouldn't be?" Neil was about to answer when the cops showed up. They all quickly got out of their cars and pointed their guns at Mallory. "Oh boy…"


	3. Chapter 3

The police stared at Mallory in both horror and disgust, a few sneering at her as if they were better than her and she was just trash. _Wow...I mean I know I don't look the best but damn guys chill with the faces. Also fuck you, you got nothin on me. _One officer, he looked to be the one in charge, stepped forward with a megaphone. He raised the megaphone to his lips. "You are surrounded! Release the boy and take three steps away from him." Mallory set Neil down, earning protests from the young boy but gave him a look that said -Don't worry. Everything's fine just trust me- Neil stopped protesting and watched with tear-filled eyes as Mallory stepped away and raised her hands in the air. "Very good. Now, get on your knees and put your hands behind your head." Mallory slowly got down on her knees, ignoring the pain that flared up her right leg. The man must have stabbed her. She placed her hands behind her head and the lead officer motioned for one of his subordinates to cuff Mallory. The man pulled out a pair of cuffs and made his way towards Mallory when a voice spoke up from the house. "HOLD IT! HOLD EVERYTHING YOU DUNDERHEADS!" Everyone turned and looked at the old man who was stumbling his way out of the house in his jammies and waving his cane. Henry looked furious and hurried over to the officer with the cuffs. He bopped him on the head and pushed him back with his cane. "I called you all to help this girl not cuff her! The one you're looking for is a tall man!" The head officer sneered at the old man, obviously upset that he was interrupted and that no one was cuffed. "And do you have any proof old man?" Henry gave a toothy grin and waved for him to follow. "I got footage!" the head officer rolled his eyes and ordered the others to watch Mallory as he went inside with Henry. Neil stayed outside refusing to leave Mallory's side even after several officers told him to stay away.

Henry lead the head officer, whose name was Paul who was apparently the chief of police, to a room in the back of the house. "I got these cameras installed about a year ago. They should have caught footage of who you're really lookin for I swear it on my walkin cane!" Paul just grunted in response and looked around the room. There were several screens that had black and white footage showing almost the entire place outside of the house and motel. Henry picked up a small remote that was labeled 'Camera Six' and pointed it at a screen. On the screen at that moment, was several rooms, one of them being Mallory's. The window was broken and there was a shattered lamp, the cord hanging in the window. "Let's rewind a bit here…" Henry held the remote up to his face. He smiled and pressed a button, rewinding the video about seven minutes. They watched for about two maybe three minutes when a man, who was bleeding heavily, jumped out of the broken window and ran off out of the cameras view. Mallory was soon seen to run out chasing after him looking angry. Henry turned back to Paul with a smile. "See! She's the victim not the attacker!" Paul scoffed. "That doesn't prove anything! How do I know that it wasn't the girl who broke in." Henry huffed and re-winded the video even more, at least thirty minutes. The two watched for about five minutes when a man came into view a knife in hand. He slowly opened the window and crawled in. After another three minutes, they could see Mallory leaning out the window and looking around as if confused. They then watched as she closed the window. Henry gave Paul a triumphant smile as he pointed at the screen. "Ha! Proof!" Paul grunted and made his way out of the room, through the house, and back outside where every officer were still pointing their guns at Mallory. Little Neil yelling at them to go away and to leave her alone. With long strides, Paul made his way over to Mallory and grabbed her by the arm pulling her to her feet. "Everybody stand down!" he barked, glaring at his subordinates. He then looked down at Mallory who held no expression. "I have some questions for you girl so you're coming with us." Once again Henry stumbled out of the house and he bopped Paul on the head with his cane. "She ain't going nowhere with you! Not tonight! If you want, I'll send her by tomorrow when she's out shopping but right now, SHE NEEDS REST!" Paul, tired of the eccentric old man, let Mallory go and made his way back to his car. "I want her at the station by 10:30 sharp!" he snapped. "I'll be there by one. I have to clean up that room tomorrow." Paul glared. "10:30 and no later."

The three of them watched as everyone got back in their cars and drove off. Mallory turned and looked at Henry. "The police here suck, they weren't helpful at all." Henry chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. "I shouldn't have called but we were worried when we heard the shouting and I'm the only one here who can shoot a proper gun, but with these frail arms I can't really hold it up any more." Mallory smiled a little. "I can shoot a gun." Henry looked surprised then let out a laugh. "Of course you can, You're Mallory! You can do anything!" Mallory let out a sigh. She was exhausted, annoyed, angry and kinda hungry. Then she realized something that made her even more angry. "MANIAC, MAYHEM!" Her robotic pets poked their heads out the door. "Yeah?" Mallory glared harshly. "I blew the whistle...WHY DIDN'T YOU HELP ME?!" Maniac and Mayhem just stared at her. Mallory placed her hands on her hips waiting for an answer. "You looked like you were having fun!" Maniac said happily. Mayhem just pretended to lick his paw even though he didn't have a tongue. "Plus, I didn't want to." Mallory growled and held up the whistle. "When I blow this that means help me! I made it to where only you guys could hear its frequency and that it should give you the realization that I, your owner and creator, am in danger and in need of assistance!" Mayhem tilted his head. "You were doing fine on your own." he stated happily.

"THAT'S NOT THE POINT!" Neil tugged on Mallory's pant leg, making said girl look down at him. "Mallory...if you want you can sleep in my room tonight." he suggested shyly. Mallory could tell he was trying to change the subject so she would calm down and of course, Mallory fell for it. She always did. "Sure I guess if it's fine with gramps that is." they looked up at the old man to see that he was asleep. The two of them stared at him dumbfounded and Mallory snapped her fingers under his nose. "He's out. Alright let's just go to bed…" Mallory picked up Henry and swung him over her shoulder. Neil grabbed his grandfather's walking cane and Mayhem and Maniac grabbed their charging stations from the room and they all went into the house. Mallory locking the door behind them.

Mallory made her way through the house and to Henry's bedroom. She dumped him onto the bed and tucked him in. Waiting until she knew he wouldn't wake up, Mallory checked the window and made sure it was locked. She then proceeded to go all around the house making sure every single window was locked and that all the curtains were closed. She made her way to Neil's room to find that Neil had been waiting for her patiently and was holding a first aid kit. Mallory blinked when she noticed it then looked down at herself. She had several long cuts going down her arms and had a stab wound in her right leg. She then looked over the full-length mirror Neil had in his room and touched her left cheek which was bleeding quite a bit and noticed that her right cheek was swollen. How had her eyes been spared in that tussle? _Who cares how bad I look. Not like I'm trying to impress anyone._ Mallory then looked back at Neil who was giving her big, sad puppy eyes. "You want to patch me up...don't you?" Neil slowly nodded and Mallory looked conflicted. _On one hand, I'll be fine in a few hours and would only need a good night's rest_. _On the other hand...he just looks so cute!_ Mallory sighed and sat down, extending her leg. "Alright. First you start with the worse wound on the body and slowly make your way up to the lesser ones." Neil gave her a bright smile and started cleaning her stab wound with disinfectant. Mallory watched him with a blank expression but couldn't help the smile that slowly formed on her lips. This reminded her of the first time he had wanted to patch her up. Of course, she still felt guilty, as she had awakened him to a world that was never made for him.

*=flashback

~=end of flashback

_***Mallory was running some errands for Henry while he was out with Neil at the park. She didn't mind running errands for the old man, as he was kind enough to let her stay at the motel by paying with physical labor instead of with money since she didn't have any. That agreement happened about a week ago. Maniac was with her while Mayhem decided to stay at the motel, saying that he didn't want to bother with such trivial human things. Maniac looked up at Mallory, with what she assumed was with pure curiosity and excitement. He may have been a robot but he did have feelings and interests, so did Mayhem. "What's first on the list Mallory?" he asked, his robotic tail wagging frantically. Mallory dug around her pocket and pulled out a small list. She unfolded it and read the first item out loud. "First we need to...huh." Maniac tilted his head. "What is it?" Mallory showed him the list. "Says we have to get a bouquet of daisies and yellow tulips." Maniac tilted his head even more. "Why do we need to get those?" Mallory shrugged, folding the list and shoving it back in her pocket. "Dunno. Might as well get them though. Hey did you ever delete the basket mode I installed?" Maniac shook his head, the screen on his chest gave the option of a basket and Mallory pressed it. His back opened up and started forming a box shape that was exactly 600 Inches in both width and length. It was small, yes, but still was better to have for carrying things then to have nothing at all. The two of them headed to the small market in town that had many little shops to choose from. There were bookstores, a flower shop, small food outlets, cafes, hardware, electronics, auto-repair shops, toy stores, and vendors. Mallory entered the flower shop and looked around. There were all kinds of plants, not just flowers. She didn't want to take too long here so she went straight to the counter where a woman stood with a wide and overly happy smile. "Hello! I'm Rose! Welcome to Florist Flares, where you can find any type of plant you need whether to place on a grave, give to your loved ones or need for certain medical uses! How may I help you this fine day?" she asked in a high-pitched cheerful voice. Mallory just stared at her blankly. "I need a bouquet of Yellow tulips and daisies." she stated bordly. The woman went to the back of the shop without a word and came back seconds later holding the two items. "That will be $10.50!" Mallory pulled out a small wallet that Henry had given her and took out a ten and a one. She gave it to the lady and took the flowers. "Keep the change. Also I have a tip for you miss." The woman tilted her head. "What would that be ma'm?" Mallory pointed at the women's wide and unnerving smile. "That's gonna freak people out. I see you don't have many customers and it may be because of this forced smile that's honestly kinda creepy. Give them a beautiful, natural smile and I'm sure you'll start getting more customers." the woman's smile slowly faded and her expression went blank. "Do you think it could work?" Mallory nodded and left the store. Before she was completely out the door however, she turned back to give the woman a small smile. "Also don't smile too much. You might hurt yourself." she then left, leaving the lady to stand there, confused. Mallory gently placed the flowers in the basket and she and Maniac started walking again. She looked at what they needed next and sighed. "Time to get cleaning supplies." **_

_**It had taken them thirty minutes to get all of the cleaning supplies and a few other items. When they left the store, they were surprised to see Henry bumbling around like a madman screeching Neil's name. That's when they realized that Neil wasn't with him. Mallory and Maniac ran over, Mallory grabbing him by the shoulders. "Henry, Henry what's wrong? Where's Neil I thought you took him to the park?!" Henry's eyes locked with hers and she could see all of the worry and fear he was feeling. "W-we were at the park and I was just watching him play with the other youngins that were there with their families and I must have dozed off...when I woke up, Neil was gone! It must have been those blasted Knife-turners! I swear I'm going to beat their bottoms if they've done anything to my boy!" He then pushed past her and started screaming out for Neil. "NEIL! NEIL MY BOY PLEASE ANSWER ME! WHERE ARE YOU?!" Henry had tears streaming down his face by this point. Everyone who was around just ignored him, a few throwing small objects at him trying get him to shut up. Mallory let out a bloodthirsty aura at anyone who threw something and they would faint from the pressure, but everyone else would just ignore them too when it happened. Mallory stopped Henry and turned him to face her. She gently rested her palms against his cheeks and gave the old man a gentle smile. "Henry. Calm down. I know you're worried about Neil but this is not the way to go about finding him. I want you to go rest somewhere and leave finding Neil to me. I promise that I will bring him back to you unhurt and perfectly fine." Henry looked skeptical by her promise and looked down at Maniac who slowly nodded. "She's really good at keeping her promises." he assured him. Henry sighed and rested a hand on her shoulder. "Please bring me my Neil...He's all I have left." Mallory gave him a firm nod and looked down at Maniac. "Maniac, I want you to stay with Henry." **_

"_**WHAT WHY?!" Mallory knelt down and rested a hand on his head. "Because you are a robo dog with many talents and Henry is a defenseless old man surrounded by uncaring people. I want you to make sure nothing happens to him. Got it?" Maniac thought for a moment then nodded. Mallory smiled and kissed his snout before running off to the park where Henry and Neil had been.**_

_**When Mallory got to the park, the first thing she did was start asking the parents if they had seen any sort of suspicious actions. A few stating that she was acting suspicious herself. She just brushed them off and started looking around the playground when she spotted something familiar. A short-sleeved, green hoodie. Mallory picked it up and studied the cloth. Then saw something that made her blood boil. There was blood on his hoodie. His blood. Mallory could feel her rage build up and knew she was about to lose herself. She knew that she was about to kill, She needed to calm it. She needed to calm her rage or anything she does will be against her choice. She spotted a wallet a few feet away and quickly snatched it up. She pulled out a high school ID. The photo was of a young boy who was at least fourteen years old and was clearly putting in the effort to look like a bad kid. Mallory read his name and a wicked smile formed on her lips. "Matthew Johnson." she started to giggle. "I'm gonna find you...and I'm going to rip you apart." Mallory looked down when the scent of blood wafted into her nose and she smiled. The idiots left a trail of blood. Bad for them and good for her. She started to follow it noting that it lead her into the forest. "I'm coming for you." **_

_**Neil laid on the ground, bloody and bruised. He kept crying out for his grandpa, screaming that he wanted to go home but his captors wouldn't let him. It was four teenage boys who were in a foul mood and decided that they wanted to take it out on their favorite little play thing. Matthew, the leader of the little gang of four, punched Neil in the gut. "Stop crying! No one's coming for you freak and no one ever will. Why would anyone care about a little shit like you anyway?" Neil clutched his stomach as he laid on his side, coughing violently. A rather short, well-rounded boy at least a year younger than Matthew named Roy, waddled over. He was carrying a short metal pipe that was blunt on one end and had been sharpened to a point on the other. Neil looked up at Roy with tear filled eyes and watched as he raised the pipe above his head, the blunt end gleaming in the sunlight, and brought it down onto Neil's arm. Neil cried out in pain as Roy kept beating him with the pipe swinging over and over earning laughs from the other three who clearly enjoyed watching him suffer. After awhile Neil stopped crying. He stopped screaming. He slowly became numb. Jason, a boy who was tall and lanky, walked over and yanked Neil up by the arm and threw him into a tree. Matthew then dug around his pocket and pulled out a knife. The other three stared at him, knowing what was about to come next. Except they were horrified because they didn't think, and were kinda hoping, that he wouldn't take it to this point. The point to kill. The fourth boy, a small kid with thick black glasses named Richard, stepped forward holding out a hand. "M-Matthew you aren't going to actually...kill him...are you?" he asked uncertainly. Matthew turned to him with a crazy smile. "Why the Hell not? No one wants the little brat around. I mean, he has no parents, his grandpa is a nutcase! He talks to plants and stupid little animals like some freak and acts like they say stuff back. He's a pathetic shit that doesn't deserve his life! Everyone hates him and I can't blame them. He's just a useless piece of tra-" a twig snapped quickly shutting Matthew up. They all turned back to where Neil was lying and looked past him into the forest. Matthew looked back at Roy and motioned for him to go check it out. Roy clutched his pipe and shook his head so fast that it looked like it was about to fall off. Matthew glared and pointed his knife in Roy's direction. "Go. Look." he hissed through his teeth. Roy, now even more terrified from the thought of Matthew's wrath being pointed towards him, slowly crept past them and into the trees which gradually seemed to grow darker even though the sun was still high in the sky. Silence had fallen over everyone, it had fallen all over the forest until a blood-curdling, ear-piercing scream cut through. The three boys, now concerned for their lives started pushing each other trying to get someone to go in after Roy and see what happened. That's when Matthew had the idea to send Neil. With a powerful stride and a evil smile adorning his lips, Matthew made his way towards Neil and pulled him up and onto his feet. The younger boy looked up at him with dull eyes and Matthew just glared. "Go. Find Roy." Neil, now no longer feeling like he had a choice in the matter, did as he was told and staggered off into the woods. **_

_**Neil stumbled around and would keep glancing back to where Matthew and the others were waiting, hoping that he could possibly use this chance to escape. Yet he didn't as he believed it would only make things worse for him. So he continued on until he came upon Roy who was laying on the ground unmoving, in a pool of red liquid. Neil walked around Roy's unmoving body and stopped when he saw what had become of Roy. Roy's head was smashed open and his brain oozed out in a puddle as if it had been stirred into mush and his eyes were lying on the ground in front of him, staring up at Neil. Neil started to shake as both fear and bile began to rise up inside of him. Neil fell to his hands and knees and threw up on the spot. The sight was just so grotesque and horrifying his stomach couldn't handle it. He suddenly felt a hand rubbing his back and whipped around coming face to face with Mallory who was kneeling next to him and holding a bloody pipe, blood on her clothes, hands and face. Neil at first was confused but then he looked back at Roy's body and back at Mallory then back to Roy and so forth. This went on for a few minutes until something had clicked in his brain when he finally took one last look at Roy's body. He slowly looked back at Mallory who gave him a smile. "Are you okay Neil? You seem out of it."**_


	4. Chapter three part two

"_**Neil? You need to tell me if you're okay or not." Mallory stated lifting up his chin and studying his face. She then started to check him over and with every wound she found, her rage continued to grow. "Neil…" Neil slapped her hands off him and tried to crawl away but Mallory grabbed his arm and pulled him into her lap. "Don't you crawl away from me. I've been out looking for you for awhile now. You're grandpa has been worried sick." Neil looked up at her in fear. "Y-You killed him…." Neil muttered. Mallory only nodded and pointed at Roy's body. "He didn't have a choice. What he did was unforgivable." Neil looked over at Roy's body and remembered all the times he had beat him and his grandpa. He looked down at his body and studied all of his cuts and bruises. Roy had been the reason for most of these as Matthew had ordered him. But he could have refused Matthew's orders. "Hurting you and your grandpa was one of the few things he did. He had committed many more crimes that would have gotten him sentenced for life. The other three as well, except Matthew, who will most likely be sentenced to death for what he has done in his short fourteen years. Murder of small children and...well...something you're too young to understand right now. Of course, they will no longer have a choice." Neil gave her a confused look and she only smiled and kissed his forehead. Mallory moved him off her lap and knelt to where she was facing away from him. She looked back at him. "Get on. Let's go pay those kiddos a visit." Neil nodded and crawled onto her back wrapping his arms around her neck. Mallory hooked her arms under his legs and stood up. Before they left to go find Matthew, Mallory hooked her foot under the pipe and kicked it up, catching it in her mouth. Neil made a face. "That can't be sanitary…" Mallory chuckled through the metal and started walking, Neil telling her where to go. **_

_**Matthew was starting to get impatient. He had sent Neil out over fifteen minutes ago and he hadn't come back yet. "I swear if he died before I got to end him myself, someone is taking his place and I don't care who." he muttered darkly. Jason and Richard shared an uneasy glance worried that they would be the ones to face his rage. It was evident that he was tense and that he was slowly becoming even more angry as he gripped the handle of his knife. "Where the hell is that fucking shithead?!" Matthew was about to lose it**_ _**when everyone heard the sound of a twig crack. They all turned back to the path they had sent Neil on and found that the forest had fallen into complete darkness. This had confused them all since it was the middle the day and there were no clouds in the sky which means that the forest shouldn't look like night had fallen. A soft, melodic humming could be heard from the dark forest and it grew louder and closer. Then it stopped. There was nothing but silence as they stared into darkness and they didn't say it but they all saw something that sent fear up their spines and froze them in place. Richard saw the his parents. They were nothing but bloody corpses on the ground and standing over them was his uncle who glared at him with a lustful intensity. Jason saw his adorable baby sister laughing a playing in a field before running into a busy highway and getting hit by a truck. Matthew saw his older brother standing in front of a large crowd holding a trophy and his parents who were standing next to him wearing proud smiles. A shadow emerged from his brother and covered Matthew making him temporarily blind and when he could see again, it wasn't just his brother there. There were children and adults alike along with his parents. They all glared at him with a burning hatred and started screaming their bodys turning to static and disappearing only to reappear as mangled corpses of those he had killed in his fourteen years of living. But he didn't regret a single one. The three of them stood there, staring into the nightmarish void as many things played in their minds. It was all their lives up until that point. Up until that very point time and stopped onto a shadowy figure wearing a twisted grin. When it ended, the darkness faded away and the forest lit up in a beautiful and almost holy light. Standing amongst the trees only a few feet away, was Neil who was holding hands with a girl they had never seen before. Matthew growled, his eyes never leaving Neil as stalked towards the two, Neil hiding behind the girl. "So you went and brought some bitch huh? Guess you're going to get some severe pun-" Matthew's words caught in his throat when he felt a bloodthirsty aura ooze around him making him stop in his tracks. He had never felt something like this before. He was terrified. Matthew tore his eyes away from Neil just in time to jump back, the sharp end of a bloody pipe grazing his jaw. He held his chin and pulled his hand away to see that there was blood. Furious he looked up at the girl who stared at him blankly. "The fuck you think you're doing whore?!" he bellowed stomping his foot on the ground in a fit of rage. "My name isn't whore. It's Mallory." **_

_**Jason, who felt confident since Mallory was short and rather weak looking, stepped forward with a smirk his hands in his pockets. "Well, MALLORY," he spat out her name as if it were some disease. "Smart move telling us your name. You do know who we are don't you? Every kid in town does. We're the Knife-turners!" Jason pulled a small knife from his pocket and pointed it at her. When he got no response or any sign of some sort of fear, he walked forward waving his knife around. "What's the matter? Scared? Well you should be-" Mallory appeared in front of him and thrusted the pipe into his stomach, in between his ribcage and out his back. Mallory stood there, emotionless, as she watched Jason stumble back in shock, dropping his knife and falling over clutching the pipe in his trembling hands blood trickling onto the ground. Mallory picked up the knife and walked over to the bleeding boy and she pulled out the pipe only to roll him over and stab it into his left shoulder, making him cry in pain. She dug it into the ground so he couldn't move. Mallory stood over him holding the knife. "How bad has this one hurt you Neil?" **_

"_**He's beat me. Mostly bruises." Mallory held the edge of the blade to his throat and smiled. "Then I guess this one will be quick." In one swift motion she sliced open his throat and blood sprayed all over her face and onto her clothes. Jason clutched at his throat taking in quick short gasps of air but could feel himself losing consciousness. Mallory watched as the life faded from his eyes with an amused smile and touched the blood pouring from the wound and onto the ground like little crimson waterfalls. Mallory stood up straight and looked over at the other two boys. She pulled the Pipe out of Jason's shoulder and moved it between both boys. "Eenie meenie miney…" the pipe landed on Richard who had soiled himself. "Moe." Mallory pulled back her hand and, with surprising accuracy, threw the knife at Richard. The blade dug deep into the center of his chest leaving him momentarily stunned, giving Mallory the chance to rush over, grab the handle and drag the knife all the way down his body, cutting open his stomach. She dug her hands between the wound and ripped open his flesh letting his intestines fall to the ground in a pile as they no longer had anything keeping them in his body. Stepping to the side, Mallory let his lifeless body fall to the ground and stared at Matthew who stared back in horror. Mallory slowly started walking towards him, Matthew frozen in place by her icy glare. Never had Matthew seen something so...horrific. He had done many terrible things in life and had taken many lives himself but never had he seen something like this. Never had he killed someone like this. Never had he been the mouse in the game. This feeling of fear was slowly consuming him, making Matthew go numb. Before, he had felt high and mighty and felt that he was in control of everything. Before, he felt like he could do anything and could have anything. Now he felt small, and scared and he knew he was about to die. There was no avoiding it but he wasn't ready to die. He didn't want to die. He couldn't accept it. Matthew held up a hand and gave her a forced smile. "H-Hey...l-let's talk about this! I-I can help you. You're obviously not from around here and need someone to show you the ropes. P-Plus I uh can help with the bodies you end up with after killing ya know? I'm really good at getting rid of bodies! It would be the best choice I ever made, helping you and-and you would benefit from it!" With every step Mallory took towards him, he took a step back. This continued until he was pushing his back against a tree staring at Mallory in horror as she raised the knife. "You don't get a choice." Mallory brought the knife down and stabbed it into his eye. Matthew screamed in pain as Mallory tugged on the knife, pulling it out along with his eye. Mallory stepped away and watched as he fell to his knees clutching his empty eye socket. She was about to continue torturing the youth when a white blur shot past her and tackled Matthew into a bundle of bushes. Screams started emanating from the bushes and Mallory heard several snaps and crunches as if bones were being snapped in half.**_

_**Suddenly, the screams stopped and everything fell into an unsettling silence. Mallory looked back to Neil and held a finger over her lips, signaling for him to stay quiet. She slowly crept forward towards the bush which started shaking violently. She leaned forward, her face inches away from the bush and she saw what had attacked Matthew. It's flesh was white and stained with blood and it's body was set in a way that looked incredibly uncomfortable. The thing had dark sunken eyes with white pupils, sharp jagged teeth and long claws that were stained with blood. It hunched over Matthew's body, munching away on his flesh. Mallory slowly moved back only to step on a stick making it snap. She froze when the things head snapped towards her direction and stared at her hungrily. **__**Why are there so many sticks here? **__**She thought bitterly. Mallory refused to move, blink or even breath as she waited for it to start eating again so she could grab Neil and run. The creature had other plans though and instead lunged at Mallory, knocking her over and onto the ground. It started clawing at her stomach trying to rip her open but only succeeded in leaving deep gashes and she retaliated by stabbing it in the shoulder and dragging the blade down towards it's heart hoping to drag it further and gut it but the creature only screeched and jumped away retreating into the forest. Mallory stood up and held her stomach which was bleeding heavily, but she didn't seem concerned. She turned to Neil who was in tears. "W-what was that thing?" Mallory stumbled over to him and took his hand. "I don't know." she looked down at him. "Let's get you home." **_

_**Mallory and Neil sat in her room, Mayhem sitting on the dresser and asking all sorts of questions about their day and how it went while Mallory tended to Neil's injuries. "Well I killed three boys who were basically torturing Neil and my fourth kill was stolen by some white gremlin. I got my stomach cut open and Neil is all bruised and cut. Today has been oh-so-great." She stated sarcastically placing one last bandage on Neil's cheek. Mayhem hissed in annoyance from her sarcasm. "Okay I get it today sucked. Sorry that I'm a curious little cat." Mallory only chuckled when he hopped off the dresser and onto the bed. "I still don't understand though. How come you saved me from those guys?" Neil asked looking up at Mallory and studying her features. Mallory pursed her lips thinking carefully how to explain. "My life...has been a series of unfortunate events. Ever since I came here a week ago, you and your grandfather have been so kind to me unlike the rest of the world...who seems to only want to shut me out. You accepted me and in return I have decided that I would provide protection." Neil looked confused. "But there are good people out there like you...right?" Mallory sighed. "Neil...There are many bad people as there are good and I know that I'm one of those bad people. But you have the chance to do something good with your life no matter what others say. You have choices. Paths that only you can see and choose for yourself. This was the path I chose. Killing those who no longer have any sort of meaning in this life and showing others the paths that they can choose to have, including you. You're still young and still have many many paths to choose from. But because of me you are now in a world that will be hard and scary but I promise to protect you from it as best as I can and help you onto the path you want." Neil glanced up at her through his lashes. "Including grandpa?" he asked. Mallory giggled and poked his nose. "Including grandpa." Neil couldn't help the smile that spread across his lips and he jumped off the bed and ran out the door. "Wait here, I'll be right back!" Mallory and Mayhem shared a curious glance and watched the door for Neil. When he came back he was holding a first aid kit. He jumped back onto the bed and opened it. He pulled out a sewing needle, disinfectant, some cotton, a bandage, some thread and some tweezers. He then ran over to the closet and grabbed a towel laying it on the floor. He looked at Mallory and pointed at the towel. "Lay down on this, please." Mallory, though confused, shrugged and did as she was told. Neil took a pair of scissors and cut open her shirt exposing the wound that she had gotten from the creature. He then proceeded to soak it with disinfectant and started cleaning the wound with the cotton. After he was done with that, he took the needle and thread and started stitching her up using the tweezers to pull the needle out when he couldn't grab it. Mallory watched him as he did this and was stone-faced but she couldn't help but admire how he was so calm and seemed to know exactly what he was doing. "I want to be a doctor when I grow up. I know I'm really young but I've already started researching all sort of medical procedures and how to do things like stitching up a wound in case of emergency and we're not anywhere near a hospital. Since you're going to protect me and grandpa, I have to do something in return. Every time you're hurt protecting us...I'll patch you up to the best of my abilities. Unless you don't want me too…" Mallory watched as he was being so careful and was so on-top of what he was doing. She smiled. "I'd prefer you to stitch me up any day Doctor." Neil smiled and looked up at her. "Thanks Mall-" he noticed how Panicked she looked. "What's wrong?" he asked. Mallory looked over at him. "I forgot Maniac and you're grandpa…"**_

The memory made Mallory's heart swell with warmth from his kindness and tears slowly started to fill her eyes. Neil had just finished bandaging her arms and was about to put everything away when Mallory pulled him into her lap and held him close. "Mallory?" Mallory said nothing and just continued to hold him. Neil wiggled around for a bit trying to get out of her grasp only to sigh and accept the fact she wasn't going to let go.

She was never going to let go.


	5. Chapter four

The next morning, Mallory found herself laying on her back on the cold wooden floor in Neil's room. Neil was laying next to her and was positioned so his head was resting on her stomach as if she was his pillow. She looked over at his alarm clock and muttered the time. "10:48…" she then looked back at Neil wondering if she wanted to wake him up or let him rest longer. Her stomach grumbled. Mallory started shaking him by the shoulder. "Neil. Neil, wake up." Neil grunted, rolled over and snuggled closer to her side taking in her warmth. Mallory was starting to get irritated since she was hungry and decided to do something else. She started to poke his sides. She continued this and watched as his body slowly started to shake. "C'mon Neil it's time to get up." She moved her hands over to his stomach and held them there. "I will attack." Neil stopped moving and said nothing. Mallory smiled. "I did warn you." she started to tickle his stomach making the boy burst out laughing. Neil rolled around and tried to push her hands away. "S-Stop! I'm gonna peeeeeee!" he said between laughs. Mallory stopped and held her hands just inches away from his stomach. "You gonna get up?" Neil breathlessly nodded and Mallory pulled her hands away. "Alright then." she stood up and walked to the door passing Mayhem and Maniac who were still charging. "Get ready for the day. I'm gonna go make brunch." Mallory left the room, closing the door behind her and making her way towards the kitchen. She caught a glance of Henry sitting in the living room reading a book. "Morning Henry." She greeted. Henry looked up from his book and smiled. "Good morning Mallory. Slept well?" Mallory shrugged rubbing the back of her neck. "If by slept well you mean waking up on a cold wood floor after getting patched up by a nine-year-old from receiving multiple wounds given to me by some idiot who tried to kill me last night...yeah..." Mallory arched her back and a satisfying pop was heard. "I slept sooo great." Henry chuckled and went back to reading his book leaving Mallory to do her thing.

Mallory made her way into the kitchen and peeked inside the fridge. There was a small carton of eggs, milk and butter. leftover bacon and some cheese. She grabbed the milk, eggs, cheese and bacon setting all the ingredients on the counter. She grabbed a bowl, a whisk and a frying pan which she used to start making the bacon. Opening the carton of eggs, she cracked three eggs into the bowl and threw the now empty shells in the sink since the trash can was in the pantry and the door was closed. She started beating the eggs and heard Neil walk into the room. "Neil can you get some baggies?" Neil nodded and grabbed his step stool. He dragged it over the pantry and opened the door. He then climbed up the three steps of his little latter and grabbed the plastic baggies off the top shelf. "Are we having omelets?" he asked. Mallory gave a short yes in response. He set the baggies on the counter and dragged his step stool over to the cabinets. He used it to climb onto the counter and grab a pot from the cabinet. He set it down and climbed back down. He then proceeded to drag his step stool across the kitchen and to the sink, then ran back and grabbed the pot. He ran back to the sink and climbed up setting the pot in the sink and filling it with water. Mallory had finished beating the eggs and separating each batch into a baggie. She got done with cooking the bacon which she cut into little pieces and put in the baggies as well. She sprinkled in some cheese and grounded in some pepper before zipping them closed. She turned around and saw Neil trying to pull the pot of water out of the sink. She chuckled and walked over, grabbing the pot handles and picking it up. Neil looked up at her guiltily. "I couldn't pick it up...I'm sorry." Mallory set the pot on the stove and turned it on before ruffling his hair. "No need to apologize. It happens." Neil smiled and the two of them stood in the kitchen chatting about random things while waiting for the water to boil. When water started to boil, Mallory took the three baggies of eggs, bacon and cheese and put it in the water. Neil watched her with a worried look, pondering on a question he had been keeping to himself for a long time now. "I know you want to ask me something. Just spit it out." Mallory stated bluntly. Neil was a little startled that she knew, but took a deep breath and asked his question. "Remember when you killed those bullies? Did you...enjoy it?" Mallory was silent as she thought over her words but decided she would be straight with the young boy. "Yes. I did. Well...a part of me did." She turned to Neil looking concerned. "Why do you ask?" Neil looked down, shuffling his feet. "W-Well it's just...I couldn't help how scared I was when it happened. It was something I had never seen before and it scared me. But you...you looked so happy when you took their lives, it was like you were made for it! Why do you enjoy it?" Mallory knelt down and held Neil by the shoulders forcing him to meet her gaze. "Neil. There are many secrets that I have and some you may find out someday but I need you to know that my actions...are not always my choice. There is a part of me that will always hate humanity and will want it gone. That part is something I never had a choice over and never will."

"What about the other part?" Mallory sighed with a smile. "It's the part that has always lived inside of me and one that I choose. The part of me that wants to protect. But because I have two different parts of me, I have to make a compromise which is to protect those who have so many choices that could give them the good life...and to kill those who have strayed too far and can no longer be saved. It's something I'm not proud of and I know it may be confusing but this is as much as I can tell you." Neil nodded in understanding and wrapped his arms around her, giving her a hug. "I understand." Mallory smiled and hugged him back. "Now...who wants omelets?"

After brunch, Mallory did the dishes with the help of Neil and took about two hours to clean her messed up room and replace the window that was broken in the fight. Once that was done she decided to take a look at the clock to see that it was 1:13 in the afternoon. "Oh I'm late. Guess Mr. Salty is going to become even more salty." Neil poked his head into the room looking guilty. "Uh Mallory? Sorry I didn't tell you before but um...you need to get down to the station." Mallory nodded looking irritated. "Yeah I know." she walked over to her closest and looked inside grabbing a fresh button up and her tyrian purple sweater vest. She walked over to her dresser and pulled out some undergarments and beige cargo shorts. Mallory went to the bathroom and took a quick shower. When she was done and had most of her clothes on she heard a knock at the bathroom door. "Mallory? It's Neil. I know that you're fine now but Mr. Paul might get suspicious if he sees that you have no injuries from last night so I thought we should re-patch you up. Just minus the injuries." Mallory opened the door and leaned on the door frame. Neil blushed and quickly covered his eyes. "Mallory put a shirt on!" Mallory chuckled. "But I'm wearing a bra and pants. Besides Neil it's just a body and if I do that how will we get those bandages on?" Neil stood there refusing to open his eyes. "Neil it'll only be for a little bit. Just wrap some bandages around me and then I'll put on a shirt." Neil cracked open an eye and looked up. Mallory raised a brow and stuck out a hand. "Deal?" Neil sighed and shook it. "Fine. Let's just get this over with."

Thirty minutes later. Neil was a blushing mess and Mallory was finally putting on a shirt. "You know you're most likely going to have female patients someday, right?" she asked buttoning up her shirt. Neil nodded and slapped his cheeks. "I know...I'm gonna have to get used to stitching up a mostly nude female body." Mallory nodded slipping on her vest and pulling her short hair into a low ponytail. "That's right. Anyway I guess I should get going, huh? Man I don't want to go." Neil was getting the bandages put away and was trying to keep his eyes off the large blood stain on the floor. He looked over at Mallory who was tying her hiking boots. "Uh I can come with you if you want." He suggested. Mallory shook her head and stood up, stretching out her arms with a grunt. "I don't think that's such a good idea Buddy." Neil looked sad, following Mallory outside he watched as she closed the door and locked it even though it wouldn't do much since her window was still broken. "Why not?" Mallory pursed her lips as she thought over her words carefully. "Well...I don't trust them and I want to protect you so yeah. Stay home." Mallory waved at him over her shoulder and left. "I'll be back later. One way or another."

The walk to the station was one that Mallory dreaded. Not because she was scared, but because she knew that meeting with the chief was going to ruin her day. From what she could gather, he was a salty old man with a big ego and hated it when things didn't go his way. He was basically the type she hated the most.

Mallory stood outside the station with a blank expression. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. To those around her it looked like she was just trying to calm her nerves, but in truth she was just trying not to take a lighter and set the building on fire. When she knew that her urge to destroy the place was quelled, she pulled the door open and walked inside. The door closed gently behind Mallory but the man in front of her looked like he was ready to fight anything. He tapped his foot with impatience, his arms crossed over his chest and his face was red from anger. Paul was undoubtedly pissed with Mallory. "GLAD YOU COULD FINALLY MAKE IT!" he snapped practically screaming in her face. Mallory rubbed the nape of her neck with a sigh. "Well I'm here now aren't I? Let' just get this over with okay Chief?"

Paul grunted and gestured for Mallory to follow. He lead her through the station and Mallory took this chance to collect her thoughts.

_I wonder why he didn't just ask me last night, I mean he didn't have to listen to Henry and I could have told him about my attacker then but instead I had to waste my time and come here, I've got better things to do. Now that I think about it I should search around town for any abandoned places. I've been itching to do some inventing._

They stopped outside a small room that had a sign above the door that read, **Interrogation Room **in bold black letters.

_I gotta get this outta the way first._

Mallory followed Paul into the small room and sat down. She watched him lock the door which did raise questions but she didn 't word them. Paul sat in a seat across from her and stared while Mallory looked around the little room. The walls were painfully white along with the ceiling and the floor was just plain old concrete. The only items in the room were the two chairs which they occupied and a little table that sat between them. Malory glanced at the chief and raised a brow. "You gonna interrogate or not, like, jeez old timer do your job." A small smile spread across Paul's face and he stood up. Mallory watched him and he walked around the table and stood behind her. He leaned into her line of sight and gave her a twisted grin. "Such a nice body." Mallory felt a hand squeeze her breast and she slapped it away. She jumped out of her chair and took a step back, Paul taking a step forward and extending his fingers. "I haven't seen such a wonderful body in so long that I had gotten so desperate. The last girl in this room was a college student but she felt very nice, even if she wasn't a virgin. I can tell that you're a virgin. I love virgins, they feel so pure." he pushed Mallory up against the door and licked his lips. "I was never going to question you. This job is just a cover up and even if you tell anyone, no one will believe you because this town bends to my very will. You won't-" Mallory's fist flew up and in to Paul's jaw, making the man stumble back in shock. He held his jaw and moved it around a bit. It was broken. He looked back at Mallory ready to beat the crap out of her but froze in fear. Mallory's pale blue eyes glared at him with an icy hatred and she hissed. "Don't you fucking touch me you pathetic piece of shit." he stood there and watched as Mallory kicked the metal door making it fly off its hinges and land in the hall. She stalked out of the room without a sound but left something behind. A type of fear that Paul had never felt before in his entire fifty-seven years of life.

Mallory stomped down the street in pure anger and frustration.

_That perverted old man just wanted to get laid! Well fuck no, you disgusting bastard no wonder everyone hates you! You're just a perverted, old bitch-ass motherfucker…_

Mallory came to a stop, her fists clenched and her head hung low, her shoulders trembling.

_Who needs to be taught a lesson._

She started walking again, her hair hung over her eyes giving them a dark shadowy look and a wicked smile adorned her face.

_And I'm gonna be the one givin it._

She thought with a dark and happy chuckle.

When Mallory got back to the house the first thing she did was grab a pen and paper. She sat down outside and began to write using the porch as a table. After a few minutes of re-writing a editing, Mallory smiled in triumph and called for Mayhem. The Robotic cat reluctantly padded outside and sat next to her. "What do you want girl?" he asked boredly. Mallory held up the paper which was folded neatly. "I need someone to deliver this message for me in secret." Mayhem glanced at the paper in distaste. "I refuse to deliver love letters." a look of anger crossed Mallory's face and she clenched a fist. "It's not a love letter it's a death letter!" Mallory yelled bopping the robo cat on the head. Mayhem sighed almost in bliss. "Such a wonderful thing to receive. A death letter. Who's it for?" he asked taking the paper from her hand and opening a small hatch in his paw. "It's for the chief of police. I swear people here make terrible choices." she watched as Mayhem placed the letter in his paw and stood up. "Says the killer girl with a love of crimson waterfalls." Mallory smiled at the thought. "True. Now go deliver it for me please. I want my prey nice and scared." Mayhem gave her a nod and bounded off, Mallory watching him from the porch. "I take it the questioning didn't go well?" Mallory glanced behind her and smiled seeing who it was. She patted the empty space next to her. "Not really." Neil walked over and sat down, his feet dangling off the porch. "What did Mr. Paul do?" Mallory rested her chin in her hand and stared ahead. "Made some moves he wasn't supposed to. Choices that are going to ruin his life. He thinks so high of himself that he can't see the pain he's causing. He can't accept the fact that he's in the wrong. I don't know why though. I did some digging and found some secrets he's tried to hide." Neil looked up at her, his blue eyes filled with curiosity. "What kind of secrets?" Mallory glanced at him and just stared. She didn't say anything, she didn't move, she just stared. It stayed that way for about two minutes when she reached out a hand and pulled his cheek earning shouts of protest from the small boy. "You're not allowed to know. You're too young." she leaned over and kissed his forehead. "And too pure. You're too good for this world." she cooed, letting go of his cheek. Neil held his cheek and touched his forehead with a sigh. "You always say that."

"And your grandpa can totally agree with me." she stated with a nod. Neil let out a sigh and looked over at the forest. He just studied it for awhile taking in all the colorful leaves that had yet to fall off the branches of the old trees. Mallory looked over at the forest and a idea popped into her head. She stood up and held out a hand towards Neil. "I want to show you something." Neil looked up at her curiously but took her hand and let her lead him off into the forest.

Mallory lead Neil through the forest going deeper and deeper into its wooden depths. Where she was taking him, Neil didn't know but was clearly excited to find out. They had walked so far that they made it out of the forest and into a lake clearing. The lake itself looked like it hadn't been touched by man at all. The water was a sparkling blue and, if you leaned over the edge, you could almost see the bottom. There were all kinds of fish and plants growing in the water which excited Neil. "Mallory this place is-" Mallory placed a finger over his lips, shushing him. She extended her arms and flopped onto the soft grass, Neil copying her movements. He felt the grass under his fingertips and sighed. "This is the softest grass ever." he said looking over to Mallory. She only nodded in response and just laid there quietly. Her once tense form was now relaxed and her normal serious expression was calm and peaceful as if she just drank the most relaxing tea in the world. Neil looked back up at the sky and smiled as he admired the suns setting rays giving the sky a soft peach tone. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" he looked over to Mallory who watched the sky with a longing expression. She reached out a hand as if to grab the color from the sky. "Sometimes, I want to just fly up to the heavens and feel the warmth of the sun's beams. But I know that will never happen in life nor in death. I am to forever wander the mortal plane." Neil sat up looking confused. "What do you mean?" he asked. Mallory sat up and crossed her legs, hunching over. "I'm not a good being Neil. I've snuffed the flame of life from so many people and my reasoning isn't the best but it's the only reason I've got. I've just seen so many bad things that I'm blinded by them sometimes. No one truly deserves to die but once they do their fate is left in the hands to someone else. And in some way...I've become the one to deliver them. I'm forever trapped in an endless cycle in the game of life and death." Neil took in her words and looked away. He felt guilty for asking his question and decided to change the subject by working with what he was given. "For some reason that sounds an awful lot like the wanderer." Mallory tensed a bit and refused to look at him. "Have you heard about the wanderer Mallory?" he asked excitedly. Mallory nodded and listened as he continued on. "They say that she's a mysterious yet powerful entity that can do anything! She travels around all over the place and they say that she never gives out her name and instead prefers to be called The Wanderer and the name totally suites her too but the strangest part is that no matter what no one can get a picture of her, and if they try, the photo just disappears! Some say that she's trying to find a special someone while others say she's traveling to pass out judgment to those who have wrongfully sinned because whenever she shows up in town, people who were thought to be good but were actually super bad, and are found dead just days after she arrives but no one can say it was her because the kill was so well done and there was no evidence left except a folder and...the torn up...body..." Neil's voice trailed off and he started thinking about his words while studying Mallory's posture. She was once again tense and her expression was calm yet serious. She glanced over at him and something clicked. He raised a shaky hand and pointed. "M-Mallory...y-you're the…." she smiled. "The Wanderer? Why yes, I am." she looked out and over the lake. "I have been for three years now, since I was fourteen. It'll be four years soon though." Mallory stated rather bitterly.

_Four years since my escape...and eleven years since the incident. _

Many images began to flow through Mallory's mind but she quickly pushed them away and stood up. The sun's light was now gone and the moon was rising up behind them to bath the earth in its otherworldly glow. Neil stood up and without a word the two of them started walking back to the house, listening to the sounds of the night, unaware of the eyes that watched them.


	6. Chapter five

The night was silent and cold, the stars shined bright in the moonlit sky, the town fast asleep in their homes save for one who was currently locked away in his basement and fearing for his life. He had made a mistake that he could not learn from or fix. His mind thought of the terrible things she could and would do to him. The letter told him so. It told him that his life was now in her hands. The Wanderer was coming for him and he was utterly terrified. He had heard of the Wanderer, he had heard of her power and he feared being one to witness it. He did not want to die. Hours before this state, he had locked all his doors and windows and boarded them up finding that if she had no way to enter, he would be safe. For extra measure, in case she did get in, he set up little traps that he used when hunting and hid them quite skillfully. The gun he held in his hands was a small rifle that he decided would be the item would save his life this very night but sadly for him, this was not going to be the case. Once she had her eyes on you, your life was over. There was no going around it, it couldn't be stopped.

A loud bang resonated from upstairs, then everything fell silent. He held his breath and listened. Another bang, and another. They started to become more and more frequent and seemed to get louder and louder until everything fell silent once again. He waited with bated breath, wondering if he was safe or if his last moments were to come. He heard a small creek and then a thud. Footsteps were heard from above moving slowly throughout the house and ending right outside the basement door. He shook in fear and fumbled with his gun when he stood up. He managed to get a grip and pointed his weapon at the door. He heard a knock. Then another. Then one more. Then silence.

The basement door swung open without a sound and he stood there in shock from who he saw. He never guessed it was her. He never assumed in the slightest even after what happened at the station. But then it clicked, it all made sense. Slowly, she made her way down the steps, her bat landing with a thunk on each wooden step. She let out a giggle. "Paulie boy." she called down to him. "I know you're expecting me! I just want to play for a bit." Paul shivered. Her voice was so cold, yet so happy. Why was she happy?

She stopped on the last step, her pale blue eyes glowing in the darkness. "How many have you hurt?" she took the last step and inched towards him. "How many paths did you destroy for yourself for this one choice?" she stopped right in front of him, his gun pressing against her heart. "How much do you regret?" Paul pulled the trigger and her heart exploded, her arm now hanging onto her shoulder by skin and tissue. He squeezed his eyes shut and began to pray for forgiveness. He had never wanted it to come to this. To take a life. His eyes snapped open when he heard her giggle once again. "That won't work on me, boy."

She stated darkly. Paul stared at her wound in horror. The bone had started to mend along with the tissue and skin. Even her heart which had been destroyed by his bullet slowly reformed and began to beat.

Thump thump.

Thump thump.

Thump thump.

Paul dropped his gun out of shock and fear. She closed her eyes and rubbed her now healed shoulder as if it only ached. "Ugh, really now that was so uncomfortable. You really do know how to make a girl feel welcome, don't you?" her eyes snapped open to reveal glowing crimson orbs. She gave him a big toothy smile, only her teeth were now pointed and sharp. "Let's have a look at that body of yours Paul."

Paul screamed.

The next morning Mallory woke up to the smell of bacon, eggs and pancakes. She was still rather full from last nights snack but thought that a couple pieces of bacon wouldn't hurt. She sat up in bed and left her new little room in the house which Henry happily provided for her until they could replace the broken window of her old room. Mallory swung her feet off the bed and stood up. Yawing, she stretched out her arms above her head and bent backwards until she heard a satisfying pop from her back. Standing up straight, she made her way out of the room and down the hall to the kitchen where Neil was cooking bacon on the stove and Henry was pouring some juice looking worried. "Mornin you two." Mallory greeted. Neil turned to her with a happy smile and nodded while Henry just grunted in response. "Somethin wrong Gramps?" she asked, helping Neil with the bacon. Henry set down the juice jug and turned to her. "Well it's just...last night there was a terrible murder." Mallory turned to him with a blank expression. "Oh? Who was it?" Henry sighed pinching the bridge of his nose. "It was the chief of police. Next to his body was a folder and apparently it held information of crimes he had committed until that very day. I'm just upset that I sent you straight into his clutches but also happy that nothing bad seemed to happen to you." Mallory could feel her heart swell with warmth from his words and looked away. "Eh, he had what was coming to him." Henry nodded and left the kitchen with his juice. "Yes, I suppose so." they watched him leave the kitchen and Neil turned to Mallory. "Um...how bad did it go?" Mallory smiled and patted her stomach. "Oh it went fine. He was very easy to break." Neil gulped a bit and went back to the bacon. "I-I didn't know that you…."

"Only sometimes. It's to calm that worse part of me. It happens once every few months." she explained ruffling his hair. He looked up at her through his lashes. "You wont...eat me or grandpa...right?" Mallory was appalled by his question. "Neil what makes you think I would ever do that?! No freakin way could I ever!" she exclaimed grabbing him by the shoulders and pulling him into a hug. "I promise Neil, you're both safe with me. Nothing will ever happen to you two." Neil sighed and hugged back, clutching her shirt. "Okay." Neil pulled away and wiped at his eyes sniffing a bit. Mallory raised a brow. "Were you crying?" Neil lowered his arm. "No! I-I'm tough! Tough kids don't cry!" Neil puffed out his chest and hit a hand against his chest looking determined. "I'm Tough!" Mallory stared down at him blankly before turning away. She grabbed a paper towel and walked out of the kitchen, holding the paper towel to her nose with a blush on her face.

He's so damn cute!

Mallory, Neil and Henry sat around the porch in a lazy manner as they ate their breakfast. They all just watched the people in town as they lumbered about in their normal routine, almost as if they didn't care that the chief was

just killed. In fact they seemed a little relieved.

Guess I did a good deed.

Mallory thought, a little proud. Mayhem walked out of the house carrying a small mouse in his jaws. He hopped off the porch and headed towards the forest. "Where are you going?" Mayhem turned back and looked at Mallory. "A place." he then bounded off into the woods. Mallory groaned and and stood up. "That dumb cat….I'm gonna go and make sure he doesn't get into any trouble." Mallory stated holding her hands behind her head and following Mayhem. Neil watched her go and sighed setting down his fork. Henry looked over at the young boy and set his plate down. "Something the matter Neil?" he asked pulling out his pipe and filling it with tobacco. Neil looked over at his grandpa and set his plate off to the side. "Grandpa, what do you think of Mallory?" he asked. Henry lit his pipe wearing a thoughtful expression. He took a puff and sighed, smoke blowing out of his mouth in a straight line. "She's a proud one that I'm sure of. But she gives off the feeling...that she knows things that we should not know. Things against the word of both the lord and the devil. She's smart, she's strong, she's brave. But I'm afraid she's hiding a dark secret."

"A secret?" Neil asked. Henry nodded taking another puff of his pipe and blowing out smoke rings. "Yes. But I don't think that she would tell us. She trust's us. Yes. But this is a secret, I feel, she will never tell." Neil looked towards the forest and sighed feeling like Mallory became even more of a mystery to him. He looked up to the older girl, saw her as some sort of older sister and he wanted to be there for her. Mallory gave him courage, especially after the Matthew incident since she refused to really ever leave his side. She would also tell him stories of a traveler that would wander around the world fighting monsters, hunting for treasure, finding ancient civilizations and making wonderful things. Sometimes she would also tell of a brave little boy who could use magic and how he would make the world a better place with every little thing he did. He couldn't help but wonder if she was talking about him. Neil stood up and smiled at Henry. "Grandpa I'm gonna go after Mallory!' he jumped off the porch and started walking when he heard Maniac speak up. "Oh! I'll come too!" he said bounding over to Neils side. Henry stood up and waved after them. "You two be safe now ya hear?" Neil waved back. "We'll be safe Grandpa!"

Mallory trekked through the woods following the traces of her robotic cat. Mayhem wasn't even trying to throw her off even the slightest. She knew that he knew that she was following him and he hated it when she followed. He would always make confusing trails for the girl to follow but instead he just made one that was straight and clear and easy to read. "What are you playing at cat?' she muttered under her breath. Mallory continued to follow the trail looking irritated until she came across something that made her heart skip in excitement. Deep in the woods, falling apart and totally abandoned, was an old factory. A small smile spread across her face as she slowly walked up to the factory studying the broken windows and walls. It was just beautiful. She stopped outside the door and slid it open stepping inside. She took in everything. The moss, the collapsing walls, the shelves of dusty old books, the work tables and tools lying around. "This is perfect." A giant shadow rose up in front of her. "I thought you would like it." Mallory turned around and saw Mayhem in the doorway. She chuckled and walked over scratching his chin. "Thanks kitty." she said picking him up. Mayhem curled his tail around her arm. "What do you plan on building here? I saw those blueprints for a new AI system. Oh and that plasma gun idea you have sounds brilliant." Mallory set him down on a table and studied the books. "Hold on a second...I think someone else had a lab here." She said pulling a book off the shelf and opening it. Her eyes widened at the information written on its pages. She stepped back and looked up at all the floors that also were covered in shelves of books and research. She then saw huge parts that seemed to have been destroyed by some massive force and the scorch marks on the wall and ceiling. She turned around and heard a loud clang from the pole she just kicked which hit something. A large metal platform sat in the center of the factory. "Mayhem...I think you found more than just a simple factory…" she said. She placed the book on the table for the cat to read while she continued exploring the place. She climbed up stairs and cracked walls jumping over gaps in the floors and found more and more tools and items as she continued her way up. The place was at least nine stories high and was filled with so many wonderful things. How had no one discovered it by now? It's obviously been abandoned for years with the state it was in. "Mallory!" she stepped out of the room she was searching and leaned over a railing, looking down at Mayhem who was still on the table flipping through the books. "This holds information for a giant portal...as in a way to travel to other dimensions! I did more digging on it and the portal was built on this platform! Do you think this place was originally owned by the Government?" he asked. Mallory shrugged and jumped down landing perfectly on her feet. "Who knows. This place is ancient. It has stuff about science and gadgets I've never even thought possible. There's literally a room full of blueprints with all kinds of...things! Mayhem you just discovered a treasure trove of science!" she exclaimed twirling around. She stopped and stood there staring up at everything in excitement. "So many amazing possibilities. But first." she pulled out a notepad and started writing things down. "What are you doing?" Mallory looked up. "Writing down what I need to get this place cleaned up I mean I don't know about you but I don't want to build in someplace...dirty." Mayhem nodded. "Fairpoint, fairpoint."

Neil slowly made his way through the forest. He was following Maniac who had picked up Mallory and Mayhem's trail. He was happy and it was a nice day and he knew he was safe with Maniac but he couldn't help the foreboding feeling that rose up in his chest. It was like something was trying to suffocate him. He continued forward finding that if he just concentrated on following Maniac then everything would be okay and he would get out of there sooner. Neil slipped on some mud and stopped for a second to regain his balance. He looked back up and froze when he saw that Maniac was gone. "Uh...Maniac?" he called. Maniac didn't respond and Neil started growing nervous. "Maniac!" he called again a little louder. Nothing. Tears started welling up in his eyes as he took deep calming breaths. "Okay...I'm okay everything is fine." he told himself. "If I just stay put I'm sure Maniac will tell Mallory that we got seperated and they'll find me." a snap from behind him made Neil's blood run cold as the foreboding feeling he had grew stronger. RUN. His instincts screamed but his legs were frozen in place as he could hear faint footsteps slowly moving towards him. The forest once bright and happy was now dark and haunting. A deep raspy, happy voice spoke up behind Neil. "Hello there little boy." Neil spun around and came face to face with a tall monochrome clown. The clown smiled and held out his arms as if waiting for a hug. "My name Is Laughing Jack. There's no need to be afraid, Neil." Neil took a step back. "H-How do you know my name?" he demanded. Laughing Jack smiled more. "I know everything about you as I'm your imaginary friend! You're lonely, lost and scared and I'm here to help you." he explained in his cheerful raspy voice. Neil stared up at the monochrome clown in fear. While he was giving the boy a happy smile and seemed to be kind, Neil had been through enough that he could instinctively tell when a person was good or bad. Laughing Jack was bad.

Laughing Jack held out a hand and smiled more. "Take my hand and I can take you home Neil." Neil held his hands close to his chest and shook his head, stepping away. Annoyance flashed through Laughing Jack's eyes but he continued to smile nonetheless. "Don't worry I don't bite!" he said, taking a step forward. Neil spun around ready to run but Laughing Jack was there. "No don't run away! I'm your friend Neil, I'm here to help you!" Neil shook his head as tears welled up in his eyes. "No you're not!" he screamed, bolting off in the opposite direction. Laughing Jack watched after him then chuckled as two others stepped out of the dark. They were both tall and one was a little on the lankey side while the other seemed to work out a little more. The first on had grayish skin and dark brown messy hair. He wore a black hoodie and dark blue jeans with black shoes. His face was covered by a blue mask with large black eyeholes that oozed with a black sticky liquid. It looked like the mask was crying black tears. The other was a little shorter than the first. He was pale with messy blonde hair, pointed ears and the whites of his eyes were pitch black, red irises dancing around in amusement from Laughing Jacks attempt. His attire was made up of a forest green tunic, white travelers pants, brown boots and a pointy forest green hat that draped down to his shoulder. He looked like some deadly forest elf. "Well he's smart for a kid. Saw right through your act." the elf said. His voice was echoey and sounded like he was talking through water. The blue masked one nodded in agreement. "Yeah seems to be that way. But did you see the look on his face? He was clearly about to cry." Laughing Jack did what he did best. He laughed like a madman clapping his hands with glee. "Oh this'll be fun! Excuse me Eyeless Jack, Ben, But I'm going to have a little fun with this one. Be sure to stay out of sight if you want to watch but leave his death to me, if you please." He said. Eyeless Jack shrugged shoving his hands in his coat pockets. "Alright whatever we got nothing better to do." Laughing Jack hunched over, his long arms dangling at his knee-caps. "Then let the Laughing Jack show...Begin!" he shot off into the forest singing out to Neil. "Alright Neil I've counted to to ten! This is a game of hide and seek. Hide and win and you go home, but if I find you we play again!" Ben rolled his eyes and started walking. "The kid already has him figured out why continue to act?" he said to Eyeless Jack. Eyeless Jack shrugged. "No idea."

Neil ran and ran as fast as his little legs could go. Laughing Jack was so not human. He was something else, something much more dangerous. Neril could hear Laughing Jack's call and slid to a stop, diving into a bramble of bushes. He sat there and waited, covering himself with mud and leaves to the best of his abilities. He pulled up his green hood to cover his blonde hair and froze. There was Laughing Jack only a few feet away. He was searching for Neil with beady little eyes. His head snapped towards the bush and Neil gasped before covering his mouth. Slowly Laughing Jack made his way to the bush humming a tune all too familiar to Neil as it was something he sang with his mom before she went insane. Laughing Jack disappeared and all fell silent. Neil waited in the bush refusing to leave knowing that the killer clown was still out there just waiting to tear at him. The humming started again only this time it was behind him, inches away. Slowly he turned his head to see Laughing Jack's head poking into the bush with a twisted, sharp toothed smile. "Pop goes the weasel!"

Neil screamed.

Mallory ran through the woods like a madman jumping over large rocks and fallen trees as she twisted and turned through the wooden maze that was the forest. Mayhem and Maniac were right at her heels, the cat yelling at the dog for being an idiot and not keeping a closer eye on Neil. Mallory slid to a stop her pets bumping into her. Mayhem glared up at the girl with digital intensity. "Mallory what are you-" she shushed him and listened. Silence. Suddenly a scream of terror filled the air followed by screams of pain. Mallory shook with rage as she recognized that scream. She kneeled down and shot off like a bullet weaving threw the trees with grace. Sharpening her sight she was able to see farther ahead. A monochrome clown standing over Neil who held his right bloody arm in pain, tears streaming down his pale cheeks. Mallory put on a burst of speed and jumped up towards the clown. She twisted in the air and kicked out her left leg striking him right in the side of the head. The clown was shot back into a tree from the force of her powerful kick, the wood cracking and splintering, the tree bending over like it was going to fall. She landed and slid to a stop kneeling down next to Neil who pushed himself against her bawling his eyes out. Mallory held the small boy close and glared at the clown with dead eyes. The next two words she spoke sent shivers down his spine.

"Stay away." they were simple words that normally held no meaning to Laughing Jack as they were the begging words of his victims. But this was different. This time HE was the victim and SHE was the killer. Lucky him a killer that showed a shred of mercy. Laughing Jack scrambled to his feet glaring at her. While she did create a sense of fear she was no match against him. She was nothing but a stupid little girl. He would just kill them both. Laughing Jack stepped forward and in an instant Mallory was in front of him. She swung her left arm her fist colliding with his face as he shot off to the side. He bounced off the ground and rolled to a stop. Slowly he rose off the ground holding his swelling cheek. He looked at Mallory who stood there calmly, a dark aura of anger and malice surrounding her as she stared at him with a dead expression. "You have no chance against me." she spoke. His eyes widened at the power she gave off. She slowly started walking towards him as he stood there somewhat frozen. "In this world, life is a game. You either fight or you stay in the background. You, are a fighter. Like me. In the background are the normal ones. The humans, who wander this planet with no expectation but to go on day by day in the same routine and knowledge with hopes and dreams that everything will just come to them. It's foolish." Laughing Jack started backing up a bit. "They are the mice in the game. We, are the hunters, the cats. But there are some mice that are more like...hm...I would have to say birds, the rare ones. The mice stay on the ground looking for paths that are closed to them while the birds soar high with multiple pathways for them to choose. They have the potential to do better than the mice. This boy you attacked is a bird. His potential is unlimited and I refuse to let anyone take that away from him." she stated harshly narrowing her eyes. Mallory stopped in front of Laughing Jack and she reached out a hand grabbing him by the throat and lifting him off the ground. "You don't have a choice." she raised a fist ready to beat Laughing Jack to death when Neil grabbed her arm gaining their attention. Large tears streamed down Neil's cheeks and he stared up at Mallory. "Just let him go." Mallory stared down at Neil blankly. She closed her eyes with a sigh and dropped Laughing Jack. She knelt down and rested a hand on Neils head. "Okay." she stood up and picked up Neil holding him close. Mallory turned and slowly walked away Mayhem and Maniac at her heels.

Neil and Mallory sat in her temporary room at the house, Mallory looking over his injured arm. "Mallory…" Mallory continued to study his arm. "Hm?" she heard Neil sniffle. "Was that clown guy...the same as you?" Mallory froze a bit and let out a short sigh. "Neil there are many people...and non-people who are like me in this world. It's hard to say for sure WHAT that clown was but yes, he was the same as me." Neil shuddered a bit wondering what would have happened to him if Mallory hadn't stepped in. Would he be tortured to death? Eaten alive? Killed then skewered and cooked? Many unpleasant thoughts whirled through his mind on all the possibilities that could have happened and fear rose up in his stomach. "There we go, all better." he snapped out of his thoughts and looked over at Mallory who kissed his now bandaged arm. "Sorry I wasn't fast enough Neil. I could have gotten there so much sooner." Neil shook his head. "No if you hadn't come when you did, I would have died. I think even if you gotten there sooner, I still would have gotten hurt. That clown guy was fast too."

"But any second later and you would have died. The killer's instinct is powerful. When we come across something we find so weak we are taken over by a desire to destroy it." Mallory stood up and brushed back his bangs planting a kiss on his forehead. "And that is why I protect you, Until I know you can protect yourself." Neil smiled and wrapped his arms around her torso giving her a hug. "Thanks mallory."


	7. Author note

Hello! To whoever is reading this story, I would like to apologize. I am still working on the next chapter of the story but have found that I've been in a writers block for awhile. I have another fanfiction that I'm going to be working on as well for one of my favorite anime's that I will post on here! Not on this story but on this site. I promise to try and get past this writers block soon! I really have great plans for this fanfic. Oh and I need to point out one thing. This story isn't just for fandom, it's also to help me work out the kinks and quirks of the characters I'm adding on here. I actually have them planned for an actual book that I'm working on with a friend. But don't worry, I'll be working on this story till it's ending as these characters weren't even planned into book originally. They just suited a story line that we were using. Thanks for understanding!

-CometFlare


	8. Chapter six part 1

(Please note. When Eyeless Jack and Laughing Jack are in the same place/chapter, I will refer to them as their respective full names or nicknames.)

"How is this possible? Is such a short amount of time, two of you have come back injured. One more so than the other." Slender let out what sounded like a sigh as he patched up LJ's face in the kitchen. EJ was sitting on the couch flipping through the channels. "He got beat up by some chick in the woods. Ben and I saw it go down. Was kinda funny actually." LJ glared at EJ with a growl. "Shut up!" he winced as Slender put pressure on his injury. "Quiet! Who was the girl?" EJ shrugged stopping on Animal planet. "When you forced me and Jeff to go on a walk the other day with Sally we found this lake clearing and saw her there with the same kid that LJ attacked. The kid called her Mallory but also someone we've all heard about these past three years. The Wanderer." Slender stood up straight now done with patching LJ up. "The Wanderer? Are you sure?" EJ nodded moving his mask to the side of his head with a sigh. "Yup. She doesn't look like much though." LJ shuddered slightly remembering his encounter. Even though he was a killer, he was actually somewhat intimidated. Her aura was that of a malicious demon ready to rip apart anything that stands in her way. Slender held his smooth chin seeming deep in thought.

_How curious. This one girl could take down both Jeff and LJ, and seemingly with ease. While Jeff came back far more physically damaged, LJ seems to have something...trapping his normal mental state._

He slightly turned his head to LJ's direction, taking in his even more hunched posture and the even more dead look to his black eyes.

_It's as if he just became a killer all over again. Restarting from the very beginning. This is very intriguing. I must see this girl in person. But how can I get close…_

EJ's words suddenly replayed through Slenders head.

_-We found this lake clearing and saw her there with the same kid that LJ attacked.-_

_I see...So...Yes this could work._

"Jack." LJ and EJ looked toward Slender. "Yeah?" Slender pointed towards EJ. "Eyeless. You mentioned that she was with a young boy. The same boy that Laughing had attacked today, correct?" EJ nodded, adjusting his mask as he 'Watched' animal planet. "Yeah. What about it?"  
"I want to meet her." Everything thing seemed to freeze after he said this. EJ's hand was resting just above his mask as he stared ahead, his brow furrowing in confusion. LJ's face was blank, but his body trembled slightly, like a scared lamb facing a wolf head-on without any courage to truly battle it.

Mallory sat on the roof of the motel watching the clouds as they passed overhead. She thought about what happened with Neil and the clown. She was curious on who it was. It had been a long time since she saw someone who was like her through and through. He was a killer. She was a killer. It was clear to Mallory, that he too knew the rush of pleasure when going for the kill. The warm feeling of watching the cold embrace of death take someone. Mallory played with a strand of her hair.

_He may be a killer too, but that doesn't exclude the fact that he attacked Neil. Though I guess it's hard to blame him for doing so. I know what it's like to find that one little thing you wish to destroy. _

Mallory looked down at the ground below her. Nothing but plants, cement and dust. It was basically just barren. But if she looked up and let her eyes trail the town around her, she found it less lonely. Less sad. "Mallory!" she looked down again and saw Neil waving up at her with a big happy smile. "Hey, Let's go to that lake again! I packed us a lunch!" he called up to her. Mallory stared down at him before a soft smile formed on her lips and she jumped down. Mallory ruffled his hair a bit. "That sounds nice. Let's go." Neil smiled and ran over to the porch grabbing a small basket before running back over and taking her hand shyly. "Sorry but I'll feel much safer this way." Mallory shook her head and started walking, Neil right next to her. "It's fine. Oh wait a minute." she turned back to look at the house. "What about Gramps?"

"Grandpa's taking a nap." Neil answered. Mallory nodded and started walking again. "Let's go then."

The walk to the lake was one filled with small conversation. The two of them would take turn asking the other a question. Neil wouldn't ask too many that he found would probably be too private for Mallory to answer, but the young boy had one that stuck in the back of his mind.

What was Mallory?

Was she like that clown? Or was she something different? He wanted to ask her so bad but felt that it would be too personal for her. He was also somewhat scared on what the answer was. As his mind wandered, he didn't notice that Mallory had stopped and bumped into her. He looked up and noticed her tense expression as she stared ahead with a cold hard glare. "Mallory? What is it?" he asked. She shushed him and took a few steps forward looking around. Neil was so confused by her actions but trusted Mallory. So he just stayed put and watched her. He suddenly felt himself be yanked off the ground and he let out a cry of fear and surprise. Mallory spun around and growled as she lunged forward. Neil felt himself jerk off to the side in a pair of strong arms and began to feel dizzy. He suddenly felt something cold being pressed against his neck. He stared at Mallory who remained frozen in place. "W-What's going on?" he whimpered. Mallory took a step forward and the cold object was pressed harder against his neck and he felt a warm trickle go down his skin. He then realized that it was some sort of sharp weapon, most likely a knife. He trembled slightly as a deep voice spoke up from who had grabbed him. "Don't move. If you do, I slit his throat. Say anything before I'm done speaking, I slit his throat. Nod if you understand." Mallory slowly nodded to what he said and Neil heard the man chuckle. "Guess you do have a weakness. Remember me bitch? Nod if you do." Mallory slowly nodded once again. Neil glanced up and saw nothing but dark hair and pure white skin. He looked back at Mallory who just stood there unmoving. "Now listen up, and listen close. A buddy of mine has taken an interest in you. In fact, just from a few days of observing you, a colleague of mine found out that you're rather famous, especially among us killers. The wanderer." he narrowed his eyes. "You've made quite an impression." everything fell silent and the man let out a sigh. "Well, guess I better get to the point. The buddy I mentioned, the one that wants to meet you, has instructed me to take your little friend here. Guess you can already get the rest of this dumb idea. Nod if you do."

Mallory nodded once again.

The man let out another chuckle, Neil trembling in his arms as he tried to put together what they were talking about. "Guess you're smarter than you look. So…" he kept an arm around Neil keeping him off the ground as he reached into his back pocket and threw some sort of beeping device to Mallory who caught it. "That's the meeting spot. Get there tonight right at 1:00. Any minute later and he dies. Got it? Nod if you understand." Mallory nodded once more. Neil heard the man chuckle and watched in horror as he was slowly being pulled back into the dark of the forest. "MALLORY!" he cried.

_AN: Hello! Sorey that this chapter is short. I was on a writers block. Well...sort if. I knew exactly how this was going to play out. I had planned it months prior but a lot has been going on and my mind has been so overwhelmed that I wasn't able to get this down until know. Sorey for taking so long, part two of this chapter will be out soon._


	9. Chapter six part 2

Mallory stood in the forest, eyes casted down with a dead look. He had taken him. He had taken Neil. She did NOTHING to stop him. Then again he had threatened Neil's life. Mallory glanced at the crumpled note in her hand and read it again.

1763 small cabin in the west side of the woods.

1:00 sharp or the boy dies. See you soon, Wanderer.

Was she really that famous? What did they even want with her? Mallory knew she had to find out; but she also knew she had to wait. Neil's life was on the line and she had to protect him no matter what, even if it meant her destruction. Mallory lifted the whistle around her neck to her lips and took a deep breath. She blew into the whistle, no sound seemed to come out. She waited for a few seconds before turning around to see Mayhem and Maniac standing right behind her. Mallory sat down crossing her legs, hunched over with her eyes casted down. "Take it out." Mayhem's ears folded back in surprise. "What?! Do you know the destruction that could come from doing so?!" Maniac stepped forward. "I'm with Mayhem on this one. I'm loyal to you as I am your dog, but I can't do this knowing the consequences." Mallory raised her head and looked at them with dead eyes, her expression cold and blank. "I know what I'm doing. Take it out, that's an order." Mayhem and Maniac stood there for a moment before slowly padding forward. They both raised their tail, long needle like cords swinging out and resting over her shoulders. Mallory closing her eyes. Slowly they inserted the needles and a whirring sound was heard as they began to suck out her blood. The red liquid shined in the sunlight, little green, white and blue specks sparkling in her blood. They continued to suck out her blood for the next few hours but nothing about her changed. Mallory looked and felt perfectly fine. However something strange started happening with her blood. The once red liquid was now a strange black ooze with glowing crimson specks. Once her blood looked this way, Mayhem and Maniac were quick to take out the needles which were sizzling. Mallory just continued to sit there, waiting. "You two. Go back to the lab. I'll meet you there later tonight. Make sure there's more for me to inject by sunrise. If you can't find it, retrieve the duffel bag from my room and take it back to the lab."

Mayhem held a paw over his chest. "Are you sure? What about-"

"Everything will be fine. I just have to wait."

…

Jeff paced back and forth in the cabin looking pissed. "I want to kill her. Why the Hell do we have to keep her or the kid alive?" he growled angrily. Slender sat in a chair with his legs crossed. "I want to know how strong she is. If she is even worthy having a title in our worlds. Both mortal and monster." Jack leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. "Why do I have to be here?" Ben raised a hand with an annoyed look. "I was just thinking the same thing." Slender held up a finger turning his head in their direction. "I want her to fight you all. You each have different strengths and weakness that pair rather well in battle. Think of this as a test. If she loses, she dies."

"And if we lose?"

"Then she'll either kill you, or you live and I gain more knowledge on who this is." He then looked over to Neil who was tied to a chair with a gag around his mouth. He had his eyes squeezed shut with tears streaming down his face. "Hmmm." Jeff looked to the old grandfather clock and watched as it struck one, a loud ding resonating through the cabin. They waited in silence for a few seconds before Jeff pulled out his knife. "Guess she's not coming. Time to kill this ru-"

BANG

They all looked to the door.

BANG

It shook.

BANG

The hinges rattled.

BANG

The door flew off and slid to a stop at Jeff's feet. Standing in the doorway was Mallory. She slowly walked in and stood just a few feet away. Slender stood up and held his hands behind his back. "You made it. Good. Since you're here we shall begin. First things first-"

Mallory's eyes snapped open to reveal crimson glowing orbs and she stared at them with no expression on her face. A suffocating aura engulfed them. It was nothing they had ever felt before. "Let. Neil. Go." she muttered. Though her voice was barely a whisper, they could hear her loud and clear. Jeff growled clutching his knife. He tried to move forward but found himself glued to the spot. Slender stepped forward holding up a hand, the aura seemed to disappear and the others felt like they could breath once again. "Listen, we mean no harm to you. Well...sort of. When I learned you were in town, I became curious as your name is well known. So now that you're here." he waved a finger and Jeff placed his knife next to Neil neck. "Choose your opponent. You may choose between these thr-"

"You."

Slender didn't say a word as he stood there. He looked to be contemplating something. "No." he answered. "You have the choices to fight-"

"You. Either you fight me, or I kill you all now. I am engulfed in rage. I could destroy this forest in a matter of MINUTES. You have crossed a dangerous line and if you even have a slither of care for this place, you will fight me. Or suffer the consequences. In all honesty thought..." Mallory disappeared and reappeared in front of Slender, her face inches away from his as her eyes flashed. "YOU DON'T HAVE A CHOICE." she spun and kicked him in the side of the head. Slender slid back a bit, the side of his head bleeding. He stood up straight to look at her only to see she was gone. He was suddenly shot forward by a powerful force and he slammed into the front of the cabin. Slender slowly stood up and turned to her. His once faceless head now had deep sunken eyes and a large black hole of a mouth with his lips jutting out as white fangs. Black tendrils flew out of his back and waved around. He turned his head to look towards Jeff. "You keep that boy out of the way. I'll fight her myself." A dark chuckle came from Mallory as a crazed look crossed crossed her face. "That's more like it. Better to cooperate then just let me toss you around like a rag-doll. It's more fun this way." Slender roared and shot out three tendrils two hitting Mallory head on while one struck the floor. The two that had hit Mallory went through her right side and left shoulder. She just stood there without a sound as everyone watched waiting for a reaction. Mallory slowly lifted a hand and grabbed the tendril going through her shoulder and ripping it from his body. Slender let out a grunt of pain and pulled back the other two, noticing the one that had gone through her side was steaming with a strange black and red ooze. He held it between his hands, not touching it as he watched it slowly disintegrate. "That won't work. A direct attack that harms my body won't do much, nor will it end well for you. My blood is made up of several different chemicals that combine as a healing agent, and a deadly acid that erodes away anything that it comes in contact with." She tossed the tendril she ripped off to the side and bent down before charging forward and tackling Slender through the house. She grabbed the front of his suit and swung him upwards before slamming him down on his head. She then jumped back landing perfectly. Mallory stood up straight and watched as Slender rose up from the ground, his height changing into that of a giant. He was at first only 7ft tall. Now he reached at least 15ft. Mallory was not phased by this. In fact she was not phased by much anymore at this point.

She reached up to her upper right arm and touched a strange metallic black ring. It flashed blue and small black particles began to pour out and encase her arm. Mallory raised her arm and the particles began to harden into a straight, sharp black blade. She swung the blade and held it up, the blade even bending when her arm did. "Change your form and I'll change mine. You may be some fantastical monster with abilities unknown to me, but I fall into the modern day list. True you possibly know more about the modern day world as killers do need pray. But…" she smiled up at him, her eyes flashing. "The pray you seek, will not simply bow to you. You see me as pray, I know you do. I know many things. And I…" she charged forward holding back her arm-blade. "Can't wait to kill you!"

Slender shot out his hands which stretched out into tendrils. The ones on his back pulling up trees to smash her with.

"HEY!" the two of them froze and looked towards the cabin, the front walls and door missing. Jeff stood there with Jack and Ben, Neil still tied to the chair his eyes wide and filled with fear as Jeff pressed his knife against his neck. "That's enough. Either you stand down and listen to Slenders demands, or you-" Mallory disappeared startling them all. They looked around keeping their senses sharp and never lowing their guard. Suddenly Jeff felt the cold touch of a blade touch his neck. He glanced back to see Mallory staring at him with a cold dark expression. "Remove your weapon at once. That or lose your life." he felt a trickle of blood stream down his cold skin warming it up. He slowly moved his knife away. "Now, all three of you step away from him. Do the opposite or attack and I will cut your heads off. This blade is sharper than anything in existence so killing you all with it will be no trouble at all." Ben and Jack and Ben moved away while Jeff walked forward and stood in front of the entrance. Mallory looked at Neil and cut the rope tying him and his gag in one clean swing. She picked him up and held him close. "I have what I want now. We're done here." she walked past Jeff heading out of the building where she was met with Slender, still in his monstrous state. He stared down at her and she stared back. "I'll say this once and only once. Stay away from Neil and his grandfather. Stay away from me. If you come anywhere near us in a 50 foot radius, I will know...and I will kill you." Mallory disappear in a flash, nothing of her or Neil was left near the little cabin in the woods. Nothing except for a small drop of Mallory's blood that ate away at the Earth. Slender slowly shrunk down and turned back to his more normal form. Jeff eyed the place Mallory last stood. It was nothing but a barren spot of dark Earth dead with no life even seeping from it. Ben moved in front front Jeff looking angry. "What the Hell man?! You never said she was this strong. You said that the two of you fought more along the lines of even ground. That wasn't even in the slightest!"

"She was different." Ben's eyes widened. "What?" Jeff clutched his knife, his body shaking in anger. "This was different. Her eyes were never red, she was both strong and fast especially from how LJ described his experience. But something changed. It's as if her abilities were heightened in some way. That wasn't the same Wanderer we thought she would be."

Mallory walked through the forest holding Neil in her left arm. "Mallory…" she stopped to look at him, her eyes now back to their beautiful, sparkling light blue. "Yeah? What is it?" she asked. He looked at her right shoulder, the wound gone, but her shirt still showed the fact that she had been impaled. "How...what…" he fell silent, unable to put what he wanted to ask into words. "I know what you want to ask. I'm sorry but I can't tell you. What you have seen today, is something that you must forget. I never wanted you to see me like that." they soon exited the forest and the motel was in sight. Mallory set Neil down and ruffled his hair giving him a smile. "I want you to go home. I'll be back in a few hours there's something I need to do. Okay? Once I get back it should be dinner time. I'll make your favorite tonight." Neil just looked up at her with big sad eyes but he simply just nodded in agreement. Neil turned away and started walking back to the house. Mallory watched him closely and it wasn't until he entered the house that she double over breathing heavily. "Oh God...The hunger. I must eat! I didn't kill anything!" she turned back and ran into the forest weaving through the trees with such speed and grace that it was unnatural. It was only a matter of minutes before she reached her lab. She slammed open the door and ran up the steps stopping on the third floor. Running into one of the rooms she began to set up as an office, she made her way to a box and began shuffling through an assortment of files. "Who...who shall end up on my plate? I need it, I crave it!" she snatched out a file and ripped it open greedily staring down at the photo in her hands. "Yes...she's perfect. Theft, fraud and abusive to her children. This woman is perfect…" Mallory wiped at the drool that trailed down the side of her mouth, her eyes now back to their deep crimson red. "She looks so...succulent!" She turned and walked out the door. "Time to eat. There is no choice."


	10. Chapter seven

Neil sat in his room feeling lost. Mallory had just become even a bigger mystery to him. What he had seen, the way she spoke, the way she fought. It was as if she became a different person. She had no fear, no remorse, no care for what was going on around her or the damage that had been inflicted onto her body. In the end, the only time she reacted was when that scary man had threatened his life. He thought back to when he had been taken to the cabin.

_Neil wiggled around in the man's arm, he felt pain flare up his body as a point in his back had been hit. He cried out before going limp, the man throwing him over his shoulder and carrying him that way. "What an annoying brat. What does that chick even see in this worthless trash he can't even fight." Neil stared out at the dark forest. It slowly became darker and darker with every step that was taken away from Mallory. He was in enemy territory now. And he couldn't do anything. The man was right, he was useless. After awhile they had come upon a little cabin and the man threw him inside. "Got the brat. That chick got the message and should be coming. Though if I was her, I wouldn't even waste my time." Neil felt himself be picked up and placed on a chair. He then felt the itchy sensation as someone wrapped rope around his body and the chair. "Whatever you say Jeff. Just remember, this boy is the bait. Hell if she actually somehow manages to get him and escape, he'll most likely be the bait all over again. Slendy was pretty interested in the girl." _

Neil wondered why they were so interested in Mallory. He wondered what he could do differently so this wouldn't happen again. He then thought about what had happened when Mallory did come. She had saved him, that much he knew to be true but he couldn't help but wonder what had caused her to act so differently. Was she really just that angry that they had taken him? Neil sighed and flopped back onto his bed, his head hitting his pillow. He suddenly felt a drowsy wave hit him. His eyes grew heavy and his mind became cloudy. "I'll...just talk to Mallory tomorrow…" he muttered before falling into a dreamless and comfortable sleep.

When Neil had awoken the next day he was met with nothing but sun streaming from his window and into his face. He sat up, squeezing his eyes shut. "What time is it?" he wondered sleepily. He looked over at his digital clock and saw that it was 1:00 in the afternoon. Neil sighed and slowly slid out of bed and onto the floor. He flinched in pain. His body ACHED. "What happened last night? Why do I hurt so bad?" he sniffed the air and smelled fresh bread. "Is Mallory...baking?" his eyes widened a bit when he had said Mallory's name. His mind flashed back to the previous events of the night and he held his head looking panicked. "W-W-What?! What is she?! What are they?!" he cried out in despair. "I don't know anything!" he screamed falling to his knees. He heard footsteps as someone rushed into the room and kneel in front of him. He looked up to see Mallory looking down at him in concern. "Neil what's wrong?" she reached out and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Don't touch me!" Neil cried pushing her away. Mallory's concerned expression turned into that of confusion and hurt. Neil looked up at her feeling guilty. "I-I'm sorry...I didn't mean it I just-"

"You were scared." Neil pursed his lips and nodded, lowering his head in shame. Hearing Mallory give a heavy sigh, he shut his eyes trying to fight back the wave of guilty tears that threatened to fall. Neil felt Mallory rest a hand on his head and he looked up meeting her kind, pale blue gaze. "Hey. I know what you experienced last night must have been scary, and I'm sorry if I added to that fear. I wasn't exactly my self at that time. But I promise everything's going to be fine now. You'll have nothing to worry about when it comes to those creeps and you don't have to worry about me hurting you. I could never do it of my own free will." she kissed his forehead, heat rising to his cheeks in embarrassment and happiness. He really did love Mallory. She was like his older sister and he knew he could count on her. Even if she was a complete mystery to him. "Thanks Mallory." Mallory smiled and squished his cheeks together. "I could never hurt such a cute face." she cooed. Neil puffed up his cheeks making it difficult for her to squish them. Mallory chuckled and stood up."How about a late lunch? I got up about an hour ago rather confused and hungry so I made some bread and stew. It's rather cold today and I thought a warm lunch and dinner would be nice." she made her way out of his room, Neil quickly following in the interest of obtaining Mallory's freshly baked bread. He knew she could cook but he never thought of her to be a baker. "Well it is November. I'm not surprised it's this cold." Mallory chuckled a bit. "Yeah I guess. You should see Portland around this time of year. The rain starts up and it basically rains all winter long. Really rare for them to get snow. But when they do get some people kinda freak out because they're just not used to it." Neil looked up at her in excitement as they entered the kitchen. "You've been to Portland? Portland Oregon right?" he asked. Mallory nodded grabbing some bowls out of the cabinet. "Yeah. I've been pretty much everywhere. How do you think I got the name, 'The Wanderer'?" she asked. Neil scratched his cheek looking sheepish. "I guess I hadn't thought about that...anyway, I wanna ask you something. It's about last night…" Mallory turned to look at him as she poured some stew into a bowl. "What about last night?"

"Well... you just seemed so much more...different, than you are now. And your eyes were red. How come you were so...different?" Mallory stared at him for a moment before turning away. Neil wondered if she was going to answer and waited. After about six minutes she turned back to him and knelt down holding him by the shoulders. "Neil. I promise you that I will tell you someday. But today is not that day." Neil looked her in the eye. He could see the fear that drifted through the calm waves of her eyes. He decided that he wasn't going to push for an answer. "Okay. But you have to keep your promise!" he demanded. Mallory gave him a small smile. "I promise with all my heart that someday, I will tell you everything you wish to know." Neil smiled and ran over to the counter grabbing a piece of bread and a bowl. "I'm going to go take this to grandpa! He might be hungry." he said walking out of the kitchen.

...

Mallory watched him leave with a sad gaze. She clenched her fists and looked down, her face scrunching up in confusion and pain.

_How can I tell such a sweet and innocent boy...that I'm not human?_


	11. Chapter eight

Mallory sat at her desk in the abandoned lab in the forest. She had fixed it up to the point where she could start bringing things in and rearranging the place to suit her needs. At that moment she was sketching out the design of a mechanical horse. Her thoughts were jumbled as she thought over the past week's events.

_First, Neil was attacked by a monochrome clown. Then he was kidnapped by that pale-ass bastard that attacked me on orders of a tall, pure white, faceless man in a dress suit. I had Mayhem and Maniac take out my S-Chemical and I almost lost control. What would have happened if I-_

A knock sounded form the lab door and Mallory looked up from her blueprints. "I guess Neil's here." she set down her pencil and stood up making her way to the door and sliding it open. Neil stood there, looking up at her with his big blue eyes, a smile on his face. "Hey Mallory! Whatcha doing?" Mallory stepped off to the side so he could come in. Neil waved to Mayhem and Maniac who laid on a table in their charging stations. Mayhem gave a nod back while Maniac gave him a hello. "I'm making blueprints."

"For what?"

"A horse." Mallory made her way back to the desk and sat down, patting the chair next to her. Neil walked over and climbed into the chair looking at the table. "Why are you making a horse?" Mallory chuckled as she picked up her pencil. "I just thought it would be fun."

"So you science for fun?"

"I create for fun. I love building things and making things and just thinking. Puzzles and riddles. Books, cleverness. It's just a part of me. It always has been."

Neil smiled at her words. He remembered when Mallory had shown up the first month. She was mostly quiet, still nice but seemed distant and cold. Now she was more open with him and Henry. Seemed more herself and it made him rather happy. He felt like he was learning more and more about her everyday, and that he knew her very well. But he wondered why she had become the Wanderer. Why she didn't seem to have any parents. He wondered if she had any family at all These questions had been forming in the back of his mind for almost two months now. He felt like it was about time to ask her his questions since he had waited for so long. "Hey Mallory?" Mallory looked at him. "Yes?" Neil tapped his finger on the table wondering if he should really ask. "Well...You've been here for awhile now and I've gotten to know you some. But I do have some questions. Will you be mad if I asked them?" he looked up to meet Mallory's calculating eyes. They flickered in the light and she just stared at him before taking a deep breath and letting out a heavy sigh. "I suppose it isn't the worst idea ever. But I do have a question of my own that I've been wanting to ask you." Neil adjusted in his seat. "You can ask yours first. Mine might take a bit longer."

"Why aren't you in school? It's winter and yet you're still at home all day." Neil smiled. "It's because I have to take care of grandpa. You see, we don't have any other family in the state. They all live in the Midwest or on the west coast, far away. I go to the school to meet with the teacher normally when Grandpa is taking his nap."

"But that only gives you about two hours of learning time."

Neil nodded and shrugged. "I don't mind it. I love grandpa and plus I'm pretty smart from what I've been told. I mean it'll change when middle school starts up. The principles of the schools in the area already know my situation so everything's fine."

Mallory tapped her finger on her chin looking deep in thought. "Well...if you want I can help teach you. I was once a prodigy. I was supposed to start High school by the time I was 8 years old." Neil looked up at her with big eyes filled with admiration. "Really? That's so cool!" Mallory's cheeks flushed in embarrassment and she tapped her pencil on the table. "Not really. I was just smart is all." Neil wrung his hands as he looked down. "Um Mallory? I was wondering if you could tell me…" he fell silent and looked back up, locking eyes with her. "Where are your parents?" Mallory's eyes widened slightly as she froze up. Her eyes flashed with fear, pain and sadness. Neil arched his back as he sat up straight realizing that he shouldn't have asked. "I'm sorry I shouldn't have-"

"They're dead." he stopped what he was saying and stared up at her. Mallory brushed her hand over an old book. "They were killed when I was little. It was actually in the summer before I was to start high school. I still remember everything that I've done with them. They taught me almost everything I know. They inspired me and I wanted to be just like them."

"What did they do for work that you wanted to do so badly?"

"Science. It was their profession, their art. Inventing and changing things with their minds and bodies and growing as people. I admired it so much that by the time I learned how to read, I started reading all kinds of books about science and math and the history and fundamentals of it all. It became MY passion. And it was something I shared with them."

"Do you miss them?"

"Everyday. Not a second goes by that I don't think about my parents."

Neil looked down. It was clear that the conversation was upsetting him, but he knew it was important. "I...Lost my parents too. I don't remember much about them. I was only 4 when they died. What I do know is that they were killed by something. From old newspaper articles and from the other few survivors, I know that they were killed by something that wasn't of this world. People told me that it was big. Bigger than most of the houses in my little town. It was covered in black fur and had red markings going across its body. They say it had sharp jagged teeth and large black horns with huge paws that had red spikes and claws, and a tail that was shaped into a ball and stronger than steel. It was like a giant, red-eyed, demon wolf." The room had fallen silent, a slight chill in the air. Mallory simply stared at Neil with a blank expression, while Mayhem and Maniac watched intently with knowing eyes. He looked up at her and laughed a bit. "I used to not believe it, but with all that's happened, and seeing a really tall faceless man with supernatural powers and your abilities, it has to be possible." he then looked down sadly. "I always wondered why, if a demon had killed my parents, why it didn't kill me too. I...used to have dreams of a giant, black beast with calm blue eyes that would flicker to red. Just holding me in it's giant paws as it watched me as I cried for my parents."

Mayhem flicked his tail. "Why that is a memory my dear boy. You experienced something traumatic at a young age. The memory never left you, you just buried it deep down in your mind because you don't like thinking about it." Neil looked at Mayhem and nodded. "Yeah I guess." he then looked back to Mallory who still sat their in silence. She was always thinking. Always calculating. But now it seemed different. It was as if she was in a frozen, twisted panic. Neil tilted his head slightly as he raised a brow. "Mallory? Are you okay?" Mallory snapped back into reality and blinked. "Uh...yes I'm fine...You had more questions?"

He nodded. "I was also wondering how you became known as the Wanderer. Like, when did you become the Wanderer?" Mallory glanced off to the side. "I'm sorry Neil but I can't answer that."

"Why?"

Mallory let out a sigh. "It's...a touchy subject." Neil nodded. "Okay, then don't tell me." Mallory smiled and patted his head before standing up. "So. I guess you decided to come here instead of going to school to meet your teacher?" Neil fidgeted a bit looking sheepish. "Well...yeah. But this was much more important." Mallory narrowed her eyes and he gulped, giving her a nervous smile. "I won't do it again?" he let out a yelp as Mallory grabbed him and tossed him up in the air slightly. She stepped forward and held out her arms. He landed on her back, his legs hooking through her arms almost instantly. "What just happened?" Mallory glanced back at him as she started walking. "We're going to your school." Neil groaned and leaned against her. He didn't complain since he knew he was going no matter what and he knew Mallory would try to catch him if he ran. He heard Mayhem and Maniac disconnect themselves from their charging stations and heard their metal paws hit the floor. The two robotic pets quickly caught up to the two of them and stayed by their side as they walked.

"I can't wait to see Neil's school!"

"Oh hush it you dumb dog. This'll be quick if anything."

Neil giggled a bit as the two of them bickered back and forth. It was so strange to see Robots act like this unless it was on T.V. Then again he had never seen Robots like Mayhem and Maniac in real life before. He figured it was just how Mallory had programmed them. He stared ahead at the forest beyond feeling happy. Neil had just learned more about Mallory, and felt much closer to her than before.

Unknowing to him, Mallory was feeling extreme amounts of guilt and fear that would not fade for sometime. A memory had returned to her. One that she did not know she even had.

_Neil. I'm so sorry. But now, I don't think I could ever tell you. I have to protect you and gramps from the truth. If you knew, your lives would be in danger ...and you would hate me, forever. _


	12. Chapter nine

(STEREOTYPICAL HANDSOME TEEEEEEEECHAAAAAA. This took me forever to write. I got into...a funk. Now that I'm back to normal I'm going to try to post more often until school starts. It's short but there's more in the next chapter when it's done.)

Mallory, Neil, Mayhem and Maniac traveled the streets of the little town, chatting about random things and getting strange looks. Neil laughed at a story Mallory had told him. "So he wet himself? After all of that?" Mallory glanced back at him and smiled. "Yeah. Yelled at everyone to the point of a heart attack, only to almost get hit by a car and he wet his pants." Neil laughed more and they stopped outside the school, where Neil's teacher was waiting for them. He was a tall, handsome young man with slicked back brown hair, stubble and thick black glasses. He wore a blue, button up with black dress pants and brown shoes. When he saw them, a smile spread across his face. "Neil! There you are, I was starting to get worried!" Mallory could feel the heat rising to her cheeks and she felt slightly angered.

_Goddammit…_

Neil climbed down from her back and hopped to the ground before running over. "Mr. Hendricks! Sorry I'm late I was doing something important." Mr. Hendricks smiled. "Well that's alright you're here now." he looked up and saw Mallory just standing there looking angry at him. "Uh..Neil who's your friend there?" Neil looked at Mallory and ran over taking her hand and dragging her over. "This is Mallory!" Mr. Hendricks looked surprised and excited as he placed his hands on his hips. "The famous Mallory! Neil talks an awful lot about you. Says you're a Beautiful, strong, independent genius." Neil blushed in embarrassment. "Mr. Hendricks!" Mr. Hendricks laughed a bit and ruffled his hair. "Calm down my boy. Now, let's get to the classroom." he lead Neil to the front doors. "Come along Miss Mallory, you can join us if you'd like." Mallory shook in place. "I hate him…" she muttered under her breath. Mayhem padded past her and tapped her leg as he did so. "You just find him attractive. Your heart right has increased and your brain waves are off. You're not thinking clearly, Miss Mallory."

"I will destroy you." she warned with an angry look. Mayhem flicked his tail as he looked back at her. "You won't though. And you didn't even deny it." Mallory growled in warning, the robotic cat running inside. Mallory followed in anger, Maniac at her heels. "I don't think you've ever had a crush on anyone before!" he said excitedly. Mallory glared at him. "I don't have any sort of Crush. Plus this guy is probably in his forties. I'm 17. No way in Hell."

Maniac let out a chuckle. "But your birthday is in a month. You'll be legally an adult then."

"That doesn't change anything." she hissed. "Yes it does! He can't be seen as a pedophile!" Mallory raised a hand to her bicep and touched the black ring wrapped around her arm under her sleeve. She pressed a small button and Maniacs mouth shut tight. He tried to speak, but it was nothing but muffled sound trapped behind metal jaws. Mallory gave a small smirk as Maniac looked up at her with glowing eyes. "Remember Maniac, I can control your body with just a small touch of a button." she patted his head and stopped in the middle of an empty hall. She looked around to try and find Neil and Mr. Hendricks, looking through classroom windows and turning down random halls with Maniac using heat sensory to try and pin-point their location. Mallory looked at him and pressed the button on her armband, allowing him to speak once again, knowing that she wasn't going to be teased anymore. "I can't find them anywhere." he said, worry lacing his voice. Mallory glanced around. She turned and started going back the way they came. Maniac following closely. The lights above them flickered before going out. Mallory stopped and stared ahead, the dark not bothering her in the slightest. It was what was in the dark that had her attention. More like who.

"I thought I told you to not come near us." she said in a cold, monotone voice. Maniac's eyes flashed on, and there, standing in the middle of the hallway, was the same pale, dark haired man that had kidnapped Neil. He let out a gruff laugh and shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah well...there was no way that Slendy was going to just, ya know, let you go. Not without knowing what the fuck you are." Mallory narrowed her eyes. "As if I would ever tell you. I want NOTHING, to do with you." He stalked forward, the light showing more of his features and the blood that stained his white jacket. "Sure you do. You're just like me." he stopped in front of her, staring down at her with crazy eyes, the never-ending, shit-eating grin seemed to grow. "You love it. You love to kill." Mallory's heart skipped in panic. He slowly started walking around her. "And that little shit of a kid...what was his name again uhhhh...Neil?" Mallory clenched her fists. "He's seen you kill. He watched in horror as you tore those dumbass kids apart. You think he actually LIKES you? No way, the little shits afraid of you. He keeps you around to protect his own skin."

"Who and why are you here?" Mallory demanded. He stopped in front of her once again. "Slendy ain't gunna rest. Not until he has you pinned or dead." Mallory stood taller, locking eyes with him, giving him a harsh glare.

"That doesn't answer my question you fucking creep! Who and why are you here?" she demanded, jabbing a finger into his chest. He slapped her hand away. "The names Jeff. Jeff the Killer. I'm sure you've probably heard some fangirl rant on about me." Mallory pushed him off to the side. "Nope. Shut the fuck up and get the fuck out." she looked down the hallway with wide eyes, frustration etched into her expression. She turned to face Jeff holding up her fists. "And put this place back to how it was! I know you did this! There's no exit and Maniac can't use his heat-sensors to find Neil and Mr. Hendricks!" she snapped. Jeff held up his hands in defense. "Woah, feisty ain't cha? Sorry twerp, but this ain't my doing. Gonna last a little while, not until you answer some questions." Mallory growled and grabbed Jeff by the collar, pulling him down to her height. "WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING A TWERP?! I HAVE HALF A MIND TO CUT OFF YOUR DICK, BLEND IT, AND FUCKING FORCE FEED IT DOWN YOUR THROAT!" He stared down at her with wide eyes. Mallory felt his hands grab her by the shoulders and he pushed her off. "Shut the fuck up. Just answer my questions, then you'll get out of this." Mallory opened her arms, gesturing to their surroundings. "What even is THIS? Some illusion forced into the mind by a supernatural being that wants nothing more than to tear apart the human mind, turn them into monstrous killers or killing them?" Jeff stared down at her in slight surprise. "How...the...fuck…" Mallory rolled her eyes and spun around stalking off. Maniac looked up at Jeff and tilted his head. "She really hates you. Or so it seems." he stood up and followed Mallory who turned down a hall. Jeff just stared ahead rubbing his temple as he tried to put together what just happened. "What...The fuck?" he looked up and quickly followed after Mallory. "Goddammit I'm not going back without some fucking answers."


	13. Chapter ten

Mallory turned down the next hallway, Maniac by her side and Jeff just a few feet behind. His unblinking gaze seemed to burn a hole in the back of her head with his intense glare. She was so tired of him following her and existing in the first place. He was just so annoying. Mallory made an abrupt stop and spun around to face him, the two only inches away from each other. Mallory glared up at him. "Stop following me." She hissed darkly. "I ain't goon anywhere without some answers. And you can't get out of here until I get what I need. You're stuck with me, little brat."

"Don't call me little!" She snapped angrily. Jeff snickered and rolled his eyes. "Yeah sure kid." Mallory shoved Jeff away and stalked off with Maniac, who just patted along without a care in the world. Jeff continued to follow in silence. He seemed to take pleasure with how angry she got. Mallory slowly pushed her anger down as she continued to move throughout the school. She knew that she wasn't going to find Neil and Mr. Hendricks, but Mallory had a feeling, one sitting deep in her gut and something screaming in the back of her mind. She felt like something terrible was about to happen.

"So what made you come to this shit town anyway shorty?" Jeff asked her. Mallory stayed silent, unwilling to answer anything he had to say. He moved in front of her walking backwards. "Giving me the silent treatment now are we? You do know I'm not going anywhere and neither will you until you answer some of my questions." Mallory just grunted in response. "So, once again, what made you come to this shit town?" Mallory sighed "Needed a change of scenery."

"And why hang around that little shit kid?"

Mallory glared at him harshly and gave him a low growl. "He has a name and that's none of your fucking business."

Jeff held up his hands. "Whatever shorty. Next question, how old are you?"

Mallory glanced up at him. "Why?" Jeff shrugged making her roll her eyes. "I'm 17." Jeff's eyes seemed to widen and he stopped causing Mallory to bump into him. "Whoa whoa wait, you're 17?!" He exclaimed. Mallory pushed past him. "Yes I'm 17. And since I told you my age, you get to tell me yours."

Jeff followed shoving his hands in his pockets. "20."

"Heavy drinker?"

"Why do you ask?"

"You reek of alcohol and it's honestly disgusting."

Jeff shrugged. "You reek of oil and rubber." Mallory stopped and turned to face him, her cheeks heated in embarrassment. "Hey! I shower everyday! Which is more than you obviously do! When was the last time you showered? Probably days considering the amount of blood and dirt is covering your face and hands. Even your clothes are a mess. At least people can stand the smell of oil and rubber more than they can stand the stench of blood, puke and alcohol!"

"Well at least I don't have some crybaby kid following me around like some little lost puppy!"

"At least I have the freedom to do what I want instead of being a mindless drone for some faceless stalker! Then again, you two must get along great don't you mister, I'm gonna sneak into a girl's room and watch her sleep!"

Jeff growled and clenched a fist. Mallory just turned and started walking again, Jeff following a few inches behind.

A few minutes of silence had passed when Mallory stopped and turned to face the wall. It had changed. The wall was now swirling with black and gray sparkly dust with flickering white shadows. Different from the pure black that had originally filled the school. She stepped forward and brushed her fingertips against the wall, a burning sensation shooting up into her body and she moved back. Jeff stood off to the side looking unamused. "What the Hell are you doing sho-"

"Run a scan." Mallory told Maniac, cutting Jeff off. He glared at her, but watched in silence as Maniac's eyes flashed on and scanned the wall. He closed his eyes as a beeping sound resonated through the hall. Maniac opened his eyes and looked up at Mallory. "It's her…" He said in a slight fearful tone. Mallory clenched her fists and teeth, her eyes dilating in panic.

_They found me. But...I thought...no...of course not. It makes sense, everything makes sense now. They were never really gone...wait..._

Mallory's stomach dropped as a seed of pure fear seeped its way into her mind.

_Neil…he's in danger! _

Mallory took deep shaky breaths trying to calm down, but her mind continued to race in panic and she was slowly losing control of rational thought. Maniac whimpered sensing the change, Jeff just stood there feeling confused. Mallory turned and face the hall, watching as the dust started to move down the wall almost making a trail. "Amelia…" she hissed under her breath. Mallory started to follow the dust trail, Maniac following close by.

Jeff stood there for a moment before following as well. He had a feeling he was about to get the answers that he wanted, or at least closer to his goal of figuring out something about the strange girl.

…

About an hour had passed since the three of them started following the dust trail. Jeff was really starting to get angry. He had wished Slendy had sent someone else with more patience, because what little he had, was wearing thin. He wanted to kill the girl right then and there. He wanted to kill the dumb kid she hung around and tear apart her dumb pets as well. But he couldn't. If he did, Slendy would kick his ass, so he kept quiet. Or as quiet as he could so he wouldn't break out into an irritated rage. He decided to start thinking about what he would do when his mission was done. He'd go out, kill some folks, go back to the mansion and grab a beer and relax in front of the TV. Sounded like a nice way to end a long, annoying day to him.

Jeff took another step forward, only to bump into Mallory who had stopped. "What now shorty?" He asked in annoyance. Mallory stood there and said nothing. He could tell she was tense, and angry. He figured it was because of him but felt that wasn't the case. He looked up to see a shadowed figure standing in a dim broken like hanging out of the ceiling in the hall, gray and black dust swirling around them. "Hello, sister." The figure said. Jeff raised a brow in confusion and looked down at Mallory who's shoulders tensed more. "What are you doing here?"

The figure stepped forward and out of the shadows. It was a girl. She looked to be about the same age as Mallory, maybe a year or two older. She had long blonde locks that draped down her back and off her shoulders with porcelain skin and an hourglass figure. She wore a pink heart long-sleeved shirt with light blue skinny jeans and sneakers decorated in hearts. Aside from her clothing, Jeff found her rather attractive in a "one-night-stand" kinda way. "I'm here to bring you back home, father is very angry with you six." Mallory clenched her fists. "That is not my name." The girl smiled a sweet smile and tilted her head as she crossed her arms. "Oh that's right. You liked being called…oh what was it…Mallory? I'm sure father would look over that and all the traitorous actions you've pulled if you come home quietly. Though I know that's not going to happen isn't it?" She asked, placing a hand on her hip. Mallory swung out her arm, the same black metal blade she had used to fight Slendy forming on her arm. "I'd rather die." The girl smiled. "As much as I would love to kill you sister, that's not my decision. However…"

A twisted grin decorated the girls face. "There's no rule saying I can't _play_ with your little friend." The girls body turned to dust and she floated up with glowing green eyes as the lights flickered and the hall twisted into a painful sight. Literally. Jeff had to cover his eyes because they felt like they were on fire. After a minute passed he uncovered his eyes to see the hallway had gone back to normal, Slendy's power was no longer keeping him and Mallory hidden from the eyes of anyone else around. But that wasn't important to him right now. What was important, was that he had seen something that had affected Mallory and was a key to understanding what she was. Except now she was running down the hall screaming Neil's name. Jeff turned to leave to tell Slender what had happened. But something stopped him. He hadn't even taken two steps forward and he already felt frozen in place. Something was holding him back. He had a feeling what it was, and it angered him. "Ugh…FUCK!" he turned and chased after Mallory, pulling his knife out of his coat.

…

Mallory sprinted through the halls of the school, loud screams echoing throughout the halls. She knew it was Neil and Mr. Hendricks. Mayhem was with them, but it was clear that something happened to her cat, or else these painful screams wouldn't even exist. She turned down a hall and slid to a stop, looking in on the first door to the left. A blast of black smoke shot out at her, and she was knocked back into the stone wall, cracking it. Mallory slid to the floor in a daze and looked up to see Amelia floating above her on a black dust cloud, Neil hanging from under her arm, unconscious with blood dripping off his head. Mallory attempted to stand up, only to have a tendril of smoke wrap around her neck, choking her. She gasped for air and tried to pull it off only for her fingers to go through the smoke. Mallory heard Maniac let out a robotic roar and saw him leap at Amelia out of the corner of her eye. Amelia looked to him in surprise, stumbling back on her cloud, and the tendril disappearing as Maniac tackled her to the ground. Neil's body fell to the floor and Mallory crawled over to him, only for Maniacs now lifeless, robotic body to slam into her, the two of them sliding back into the other hallway and slamming into the wall. Mallory looked up to see Amelia standing there looking angry, Neil now back in her arms. Mallory Tried to stand, only to fall to her knees. She heard Amelia laugh as a ringing filled her ears. "I've grown since your betrayal sister. Father will be pleased by this. I'll see you soon." Mallory looked up with blurry eyes to see Amelia disappear in a cloud of smoke, Neil disappearing with her. Mallory fell over into something warm, her mind fading into black. She heard someone call out to her, but they sounded far away. "Shorty! Hey shorty what happened?!" Mallory tried to answer, but no words came out. Instead her mind slipped away, and she passed out.

HELLO! I'm so so so sorry for the late update! This isn't the only story I'm working on and I don't mean just on this website. I have two others on a different one and I won't lie, those have been lacking too. This isn't my best work, but I finally found the time to work on this next chapter. I promise to also update Champions Journey as soon as possible but so much has been going on in my outside life that it's become difficult to find the time to work. Once I have everything settled, I'll finally be able to make that posting schedule. Also, I wanted to say, I know this story might seem a little jumpy but trust me, it'll all come to full circle and the events leading up to what I have planned will make sense. Thank you for your time and I hope this chapter is enjoyable.


	14. Chapter eleven

Mallory sat in the inky blackness of her mindscape. She knew where she was. She knew that she was unconscious. But she could not allow herself to leave that state quite yet. She was overwhelmed with guilt. Guilt for being weak, guilt for being unable to protect Neil, Mr. Hendricks, and Maniac and Mayhem. Guilt for being what she was, and for what her past has brought to her in the present. Neil, was gone. Mallory knew this too, and she could not face the reality of it. The most she could do was let herself ach in the pain of her guilt for however long she could, in order to atone for her mistakes. A few minutes passed and her mindscape began to tremble.

_The Hell? What's going on?! _

She jumped to her feet and looked around. Mallory began to try and find what was. Suddenly, a familiar, sad echoey voice spoke in her mind. "You promised…" Mallory spun around and her breath caught in her throat as tears welled up in her eyes. "Neil…" he looked up at her, with black eyes pouring out bloody tears. "You promised. You didn't protect me." Mallory crumbled to her knees as tears streamed down her face. "I'm sorry… I'm sorry I-I couldn't fight her. My past came and I knew it would at some point but I did nothing to prepare. I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…" she choked on her words and held herself. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" She repeated in despair.

"Oh sister, how wonderful is your despair is to me." Mallory looked up and saw her. Amelia, kneeling in front of her with a smile. Anger filling the very core of her being.

"You…" she growled.

Amelia only smiled a sickly, sweet smile. "You…you you YOU!" Mallory roared and launched for Amelia, she tackled the other girl to the ground as her anger rose. Amelia only laughed and turned to dust and swirled about Mallory in wispy trails. "Sister, you're beside yourself in grief over a HUMAN. This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't left."

"I had my reasons to leave that prison!"

Amelia formed behind her, a frown now adorning her face. "Reasons to abandon your family? Reasons to betray your own kind?" Mallory's blade grew from her armband and she sliced at her, only for her arm to go right through Amelia. "Admit it Six, you've failed. You've grown weak. You're only hope of survival is to come home."

"That isn't my home."

Amelia tsked and shook her head with a disappointed look. "Ah sister, dear dear sister, you will see soon enough, that it is your home and where you belong. Not among these lowlifes. Not among this imperfection. But with your own, perfect kind." Amelia slowly disappeared in a black wispy trail and Mallory's mindscape slowly began to dissolve into white. Mallory looked down and clenched her fist. "She really has gotten stronger, if she was really able to force her way into my mindscape."

Everything around Mallory shattered into white and She fell through her mind.

…

Pain. That was all Mallory could feel when she regained consciousness. An infectious pain that would not fade. She let out a small groan of discomfort and tried to sit up on whatever she was laying on. She was in so much pain that she couldn't even tell. Mallory cracked open an eye before quickly closing it. The room was dark with no lights on, except for an open window with the light of the moon streaming in. But it was too bright for her. Mallory's head pounded and ached like the rest of her body. She heard a door creak open and figured it was either Mayhem, Maniac, or Henry, which meant she must have been laying in her room. But she had a feeling that it wasn't the case. Mallory forced herself to open her eyes, ignoring the pain that filled her head from the bright light off the moon. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw who it was.

It was Jeff.

"You?" She croaked out in confusion. Her throat was drier than a desert and hurt terribly.

Jeff grunted in response and stepped back out the door. "Hey, she's awake." He called to someone. Mallory once again tried to sit up, and instead let out a small cry in pain as she fell back onto the bed. She was breathless and exhausted from that one little action, and it somewhat frightened her. Jeff turned his attention back to Mallory and walked over, hands in his pockets. She got a better look at him. He had showered and didn't smell as bad any more. He wore clean black jeans and a black shirt that said, "FUCK YOU." in bold letters. He stared down at her in silence seeming annoyed. His permanent shit-eating grin seemed to be a frown, making Mallory curious. She wanted to ask how that was possible, but decided not to and said something else.

"Guess you decided to stop smelling like shit." She told him. Jeff rolled his eyes and leaned against the wall. "Too bad you still smell like shit. Sound like shit too." Mallory grunted out a chuckle. "Can't exactly do anything about that. Do you…Know what happened to my pets?" Jeff glanced at her. "You mean those dumb machines of yours? They were totaled. Left them back at the school and brought you here."

"Where is here, exactly?" Jeff rested his head against the wall. "You're in the Slender mansion. Home to the Slenderman and and his followers. Basically those who are on his side, be they proxies, or just plain old killers who have no place in the real world."

A long shadow fell into the room and the two looked to the doorway. "Speak of the devil and he shall show he fucking non-existant face…" Jeff muttered. Mallory blinked and stared at the figure. "I remember you. You're that faceless ass-wipe who told this pale-ass fucker to steal Neil." Jeff snickered while the figure stepped into the room with his hands behind his back. "Yes." He answered in an irritated tone. "But you shall not refer to me as, "that face-less ass-wipe" but will call me, Slenderman, or Slender for short." He told her. Mallory let out a small raspy sigh and looked back up at the ceiling. "Sure." Slender made his way to the bed and sat a glass of water on the bedside table. Mallory stared at the water greedily and slowly forced her way up into a sitting position, her bones popping and cracking. Mallory scooted back so she was leaning against the wall behind her and reached for the water. In an instant she was downing the glass, the cool liquid soothing her throat. Jeff and Slender watched in silence until she was finished, which was when the glass was empty. She lowered her arms looking relieved before looking up at Slender, who had taken a seat in a chair next to the bed. "What do you want from me?" She asked him. He waved a hand. "Simple. I want answers. You have created a name for yourself in both the realm of mortals and monsters. A reputation like yours is no easy feat to achieve."

"A reputation I never meant to create."

Slender arched a naked brow in interest. "Oh? Is that so?" He asked her. Mallory nodded, but stayed silent. "Well meaning to or not, you have one. Which has peaked my interest." Mallory said nothing and sat there, feeling as empty as the glass in her hands. Slender waited for her to say something, but spoke up when she didn't. "I heard that your young friend was taken by your sister." He told her. Mallory glanced at Jeff in annoyance and he looked off to the side, refusing to meet her gaze. "That bitch isn't my sister. She's just delusional."

"And yet from what I was told extremely powerful. Considering the state you're in. Two broken ribs, your shoulder was popped from its socket, which we put back into place, and you have a shattered leg." Mallory moved her legs a bit. "Shattered how?" She asked them. The two looked at her legs before looking back at her. Mallory just gave them a blank, emotionless look. Slender scooted a bit closer. "How is it that you're able to move your leg? The bone was, as I said, shattered."

"I heal fast." Was all she told them. Jeff stood up straight. "Yet earlier you gave a cry in pain, what was that about then?"

Mallory thought for a moment. She hadn't felt this much physical pain in years. It could only mean one thing but she had to know for sure.

"How long have I been asleep?"

Slender raised three fingers. "Three days. You seemed to wake up the minute the moon hit its peak tonight, on the third night." He told her. Mallory's blank face turned into that of slight panic. But it was difficult to see. "I have to go." She said quickly. Ignoring the pain that flared up her body, Mallory pushed the blankets off her and attempted to stand. But the minute she stepped foot out of the bed she collapsed on the floor with a loud thud. Slender stood up and Jeff leaned forward. "Listen shorty you're in no condition to go anywhere." Mallory pushed herself up to her hands and knees, her body trembling. She was only in a tank top and shorts, but the two saw what was happening to her body. Her tan skin was slightly paler and her bones churned in her body as red lines crossed her shoulders and back.

_Shit. I didn't realize that my mindscape was what was stopping me. Three days is too long. Way too long. I need to get to my lab, I can't hold this back forever. Once my body calms, I need to find Mayhem and Maniac._

She thought forcing herself to her feet. Everything around her seemed to disappear as her eyesight blurred. She stumbled forward in a daze, Jeff's angry words of protest was a white noise in her ears.

…

Jeff stepped forward to grab Mallory and force her back into bed. While he wished the dumb girl was gone, he knew Slender wanted her for some reason. He was about to grab her when Slender reset a pale hand on his shoulder. "Wait." He ordered. Jeff stopped and looked at him in confusion before turning back to look at Mallory. She was out of the room and turning down the hall. Confused shouts of surprise filling the mansion.

"SLENDY THERE'S A DEAD GIRL WALKIN OUT HERE!" He heard Toby shout in annoyance. Slender moved past Jeff and out into the hall. "Don't touch her. Do nothing to stop her." Slender turned his head in Jeff's direction and motioned for him to follow. Jeff did as Slender wanted, feeling irritated by the situation. He turned into the hall to see Mallory stumbling towards the stars, Toby and Ben standing there and watching her as well. Slender began to follow once she made her way down the first few steps. Jeff quickly followed with a curious Toby right behind him. Toby ticked, his hands twitching and neck popping. "W-Who is that?" He asked when his tic subsided. "A mystery." Slender answered. Toby just seemed to be even more confused by his answer, but continued to follow nonetheless. When Mallory reached the bottom of the stairs, she was met with LJ and Jason. LJ immediately backed up a bit while Jason looked interested. "Who's this?" Slender rushed the rest of the way down the stairs. "Don't touch her. Do nothing to stop her." He repeated from before. Jason and LJ held up their hands and moved out of the way to let her pass. Mallory was sweating slightly by this point and looked to be running a fever. "Slendy…she ain't looking too hot." Jeff told him. "I can see that, Jeff. But I believe we should follow her. She doesn't seem to be the type to do anything without thinking. In some way, she seems to know what she is doing." He told him. Jeff grabbed his hoodie off the couch when they followed her into the living room and slipped it on. Everyone who had run into them along the way stood there and watched as Mallory opened the front door and made her way out into the night.

Slender turned and pointed to Masky and Hoodie. "You two are in charge." He then pointed to Jeff and Toby. "You two, come with me. We're following her." All of them nodded and Slender made his way out the door, Jeff and Toby at his heels, the door closing behind them with a click.

"So what just happened?" Hoodie asked, hands in his coat pockets. Everyone shrugged and went back to doing their own things, Masky and Hoodie left to stand there, staring at the door. They shared a look and shrugged.


	15. Chapter twelve

Slender watched as Mallory stumbled through the woods, Toby and Jeff just behind him. She fell a few times, but managed to pick herself back up with some struggle. He wanted to know where she was trying to so desperately go. After awhile they came upon a tall, abandoned building, the door slightly ajar. Slender stopped along with Jeff and Toby and watched as she grabbed the door and slid it the rest of the way open, stumbling inside. Slender made his way to the door and motioned for Jeff and Toby to stay on either side of him, hidden by the wall, but still watching Mallory as well. He stood in the doorway and watched as Mallory made her way to a strange, clear tube filled with a glowing white liquid with blue and green specks. She grabbed a syringe and inserted the needle into an opening in the container, filling it with the liquid. They watched her lift up the syringe and plunge it into her heart, injecting the liquid into her body. Mallory pulled out the syringe and dropped it. She bent over, the scars on her body glowing like fire as the red lines going across her back sparked. Mallory let out cries of pain as she crumbled to the floor. The lights flickered and a dark, deadly aura shot out from her, filling the three with massive amounts of guilt and anger. The red lines slowly began to fade and the aura disappeared. The three stood there for a moment, waiting for Mallory to move. But she just sat there, still as a statue. A few minutes had passed before Mallory stood again and turned to them looking dead calm. "What do you want from me." she demanded in a cold, dead voice. Slender held his hands behind his back remaining composed, but understanding the hate she held towards them. " As I said before, Answers. That is all we ask." Mallory scoffed and made her way over to a scrappy looking duffel bag, opening it up and pulling out a white, button up shirt which she slipped on. "You have a strange way of doing that. Kidnapping, creating a space hole that isn't in the plane of the dead or the living, driving me absolutely bat-shit crazy. Not like that isn't normal at this point." she made her way over to a box and opened it, pulling out a strange container filled with a swirling, oozy substance. She set it on the desk in a stand and began going through the rest of the box. "If you have questions then you ask the person, not turn their life into an even bigger Hell than it already is." she turned to look at them, in her hands was a gun. At least that what they thought it was. Until she turned it on and a whip made of red electricity shot out, landing on the floor. She pulled the trigger and the whip retracted back into the gun.

"I get you don't want to be seen as you are, and not to mention the bad blood that exists between me and that THING." she pointed to Jeff who scowled. "But none of this would have happened if you had just left me alone." she stalked towards Slender with an angry look. "I would have been able to fight that bitch if you hadn't created that hole in the first place!" she stopped in front of him, staring up at the faceless man with a harsh glare. "So you tell me, how else should you have gone about it?" she turned away and stalked back over to the box, muttering angrily under her breath. Toby and Jeff both looked nervous and glanced at Slender who calmly stood there. "Speaking of that, how are you acquainted with her? That "Bitch" you are speaking about. Jeff informed me that she was your sister as I told you before. Yet you said-" Mallory spun around looking ready to kill Slender. "THAT MONSTROUS WHORE IS NOT MY SISTER!" she roared, her aura shooting out and consuming them all. Slender shook slightly from the pressure, Jeff and Toby falling to their knees looking like they were choking to death. Slender held up a hand, as if to tell her she needed to calm down. "Please, relax. I meant no harm by my words. But by this point, you owe us some answers." Mallory's aura grew stronger. "What was that?"

Slender took a small step towards her. "If you had not come to this town, none of this would have happened." Mallory's aura lightened as her eyes widened slightly. Slender took another step, and another. "You would not have put that boy and his grandfather in danger, you would not have caught our eye, you wouldn't have put one of my own in danger, if you had just stayed away. You could have gone ANYWHERE and yet you came here. So tell me, Miss Mallory," he stopped in front of her and leaned over, his non-existent gaze meeting her angry one. "Who's fault is it? Who is the one that brought this fate unto all of us?" he asked. Mallory stared up at him for a moment then looked down, her aura now gone, Toby and Jeff coughing and gasping for air. "None of ours. The fault belongs to one creature that will never disappear, no matter what I do. He started it all…" Slender straightened up, intrigued by her words. "Who?" Mallory didn't look at him, instead she stared down at the floor, contemplating something. After a few minutes had passed, she looked back up, a dangerous gleam in her eyes. "I'll make you a deal. If you help me, it'll tell you as much as I can. You can even ask me one question right now, only one. But you have to understand that some things must stay secret, not to protect myself, but to also protect you and your own." she stuck out her hand. "Do we have a deal?" she asked. Slender stood there, thinking over her after. A few seconds went by when he took her hand and shook it. "Deal." A spark of red electricity spiraled up Slender and Mallory's arms, before disappearing. She pulled him down to her height looking him dead in his non-existent eyes. "That was a bind to make sure neither of us go back on the deal. I don't recommend wanting to know the outcome of what will happen if the bind breaks before the deal is met." she flung his hand away and turned away, heading to a separate room. "Follow me." she ordered. Slender was the first to follow, Jeff and Toby sharing an uneasy glance before doing the same. Mallory had lead them to a more tidy room than the rest of the building. The walls were covered in blueprints of different buildings, with different locations written underneath them. Shelves lined with thick books and binders with notes and labels sticking out from the pages. Boxes with scraps of metal and wire were strewn about, strange weapons lining the walls just in between each blueprint. "What i-is all t-this?" Toby asked picking a weapon off the wall and studying it. It looked like a sword, the strange part about it was that the blade had little lines running through it from the hilt to the point. "Notes, blueprints, prototypes that are NOT TOYS." she told him. Toby quickly put it back and held his hands at his sides, his shoulder twitching. Jeff eyed a blueprint and pointed at it. "Hey I know this place. It's in New York. It's a building run by some big company that's spread almost around the world. What the Hell are you doing with a blueprint of the building? Gonna steal something?" he asked sarcastically. "I'm going to SAVE someone. But they aren't there. They're here." she pointed at a blueprint on the right wall and the three of them looked at it. "You're going to help me save Neil, it's the least you could do since you guys were the first people to kidnap the poor boy." Jeff shrugged with a grunt while Toby looked confused. "We kidnapped someone?" Slender waved off his question. "Hold on a moment, I would like to ask a question about YOU, before anything else." Mallory turned to him. "As it was part of the deal, go ahead."

"What was that strange liquid you injected into your body?" Mallory held a hand up and tapped her chin, looking deep in thought. "Well…I suppose you could call it a Sane serum, something I use to keep myself...well sane. Something happened to me, that made it to where I can become wild and unpredictable. I can't control it so after a series of experiments I created that serum to keep my mind in check." Slender nodded in understanding, but felt that something wasn't adding up to her answer. If that was the case, then what was happening to her body before? Mallory began speaking again, gaining Slender's attention. "Now as I was saying before, you're going to help me save Neil. At first I thought he was dead, but I know the person who took him. Amelia wouldn't kidnap him for nothing. She would only do it if it was a benefit to her."

"So then why did she kidnap the kid?" Jeff asked. Mallory let out a sigh, crossing her arms. "She's trying to get me to go back. But why?" the three of them watched as Mallory began to pace back and forth, muttering under her breath. "Go back where?" Toby asked. "A place she considers home. A place I see as nothing but a prison." she pushed past them and made her way over to a bookshelf, pulling out a binder and flipping it open. She flipped through the pages, her eyes darting about from how fast she was moving when she stopped and turned the binder for them to see. "Her name is Amelia Jensen. But where we're going, she's called 104."

"Wait wait wait wait wait. What? She has a number for a name?" Toby asked. Jeff glanced off to the side. "Six." They all looked at him, Mallory giving him a spiteful look. "That's what she called you. She called you Six." Mallory grunted and set the binder down on a nearby table. "Fuck your memory." she muttered turning to look through the books and binders. Slender looked at Amelia page, studying the picture of her as well. "Jeff mentioned she had some sort of power." Mallory nodded pulling a book off the shelf. "A black sand. She's made up of it. Her heart, her mind, her entire body is composed of sand. But it's nothing of this world. That canister, sitting on my desk out there, that's her sand. A sample I got a long long time ago." she grabbed a few more books and motioned for them to follow. "I have no idea how it works. I at first thought that it was connected to her mentally but I think it might be more than that." she slammed the books down on her desk and several robotic birds flew down from the rafters, picking up the books and staying in the air as they held them open. Mallory flipped through the books, pointing at the canister. "I've let that lose a few times in the past, and if it was connected to her, it would try to go back to her immediately, but it never did. It tried to go into the Earth." she flipped through the last book and landed on a page with a picture of a skeleton. "After researching it for years, I finally figured out what it was." she swirled a finger around and the little birds held the books in front of them. "Her dust is made up of human blood, the grounded bones of the dearly departed and snake venom." she held up a hand and looked at Toby, who was about to ask her a question. "No I don't know from which snake." Toby shut his mouth looking surprised. Mallory pointed at different paragraphs in the books. "Read these and come back later." she began to walk away, buttoning up her shirt. The birds tossed the books to Toby and Jeff who struggled to catch them. Slender turned to her. "What do you mean come back later?" he asked her. Mallory grabbed a tyrian sweater vest from out of her bag and slipped it on, before sliding on a pair of socks and picking up a pair of hiking boots. "I have to go get my pets. If they're still there. From what that dumbass said, they were totaled. I've already wasted enough time with this. But if you're going to help me, you're going to have to understand Amelia's powers because she's most definitely going to be where we're going." Mallory slipped on her boots and began to tie them. "But I'm not doing anything else without Mayhem and Maniac. So you can wait your happy asses back at...what did you call it? The Slender mansion?" Toby nodded While Mallory tied her short hair up into a low ponytail, her bangs framing her face. She looked at them, her pale blue eyes flashing. "End of discussion." she walked past them and made her way out the door, disappearing into the forest, heading towards the town. The three of them stood there in silence. Slender raised his hands and pressed the tips of his fingers together. "This is becoming most intriguing." he said. He held his hands behind them and began walking with great strides. "Come along boys. We have some reading to do." he ordered. Jeff and Toby groaned and they started to follow, the robotic birds closing the door behind them.


	16. Chapter thirteen

Mallory made her way through town, heading straight for the school. Her mind was swept away with the past weeks events and a heavy guilt weighed down on her chest. When she arrived it seemed like the place was empty, one step inside however and she could hear teachers in their classrooms, students chattering about during their class activities. A wave of nostalgia washed over Mallory as she made her way down the hall, peeking into classrooms as she did so. She stopped at one door in particular and stared in through the window. The class looked like they were having a show and tell. One student who stood in front of his class was holding up a book of science history, a smile on his face as he chatted to his classmates happily.

**_A little Mallory stood in front of her first grade elementary class, her chocolate eyes shining happily as she held up a book of Astrology. "Today for Show and Tell, I've brought with me this Astrology book to explain to everyone the wonders of this subject and how it's different from Science. Now the main definition of Astrology is, "Astrology is a pseudoscience that claims to divine information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the movements and relative positions of celestial objects." which means that-" a student raised her hand and looked at the teacher. "Miss Manson? Do we have to listen to this?" the teacher pushed up her glasses as she stared at Mallory. "Um...perhaps we could plan another day for Mallory to uh...share her interests. Mallory please have a seat." Mallory lowered her book, feeling disappointed. "Oh uh..yes Miss Manson." she said sadly, making her way back to her spot on the rug and sitting down. Mallory watched as the next kid went up. Mallory hugged her book tightly to her chest, fighting back the tears that threatened to fall. _**

Mallory snapped out of her memory and shook her head, continuing her way down the hall. She walked around for awhile, peeking in classes trying to see if they had brought in Mayhem and Maniac, but so far no sign. She wasn't going to ask anybody, that would make her even more suspicious than she already seemed to be by wandering the halls of an elementary school and looking into classrooms. Mallory was actually surprised by the fact that no one had noticed her yet. She wondered if maybe they just didn't care. It would make sense, considering a majority of her experiences with the people in this town. Rude parents, spoiled kids, neglected kids. Mallory actually thought of making this town her main base. There were plenty of people to feed on here, and those who were innocent, wouldn't have to face her wrath, or be hurt anymore with those who were tainted by the purest of darkness. All she had to do was stay in control.

…

After about an hour of searching, Mallory had found Mayhem and Maniac's bodies lying in the corner of an empty classroom. It looked like a fifth grade science classroom. Mallory turned at the knob only to find it was locked. She stared at it for a moment before sighing and knelt down before digging around her pockets.

"I should still have them on me…" she muttered. After a minute she pulled out a paperclip and a multi-tooled pocket knife. She flipped out a mini screwdriver from the pocket knife and straightened out the paper clip and began to pick the lock. It only took her a few seconds before she heard it click and she turned the knob, the door slowly swinging open. Mallory stood up and shoved her items back in her pocket. "There we go." she walked in, making her way over to the lifeless mechanical creatures. Mallory's eyes began to water ever so slightly at the sight.

"Mayhem, Maniac I'm sorry." she whispered, resting a hand on each of their heads. "I'll have you two fixed up in no time, I promise." Mallory grabbed Mayhem's body and held him over her shoulder, and held Maniac under her right arm. Mallory made her way out of the classroom in silence, closing the door behind her with her foot. She then quickly made her way down the hall and made a few twists and turns before making her way out the front doors. It was much quicker to leave with them than it was to find them, since she didn't have to look through every window to try and find them.

Mallory began to make her way through the town, ignoring the strange glances and annoyed glares of the people around her. She stalked out of the town, stopping only for a moment to look at the direction of Henry's Motel. "Don't worry Gramps, I'll get him back." she said with determination. Mallory then continued to make her way into the forest, not stopping for even a moment. Time was running short, she had work she needed to do.

Soon she came upon her lab and rushed inside. She placed Mayhem and Maniac's body on a nearby metal table and went back to the door. She poked her head out, looking around before slamming the door shut. Mallory turned back to look at their bodies, and slowly made her way over, grabbing several tools off of the shelves and setting them along another table. Mallory flipped a switch on the wall, a big white and blue machine powering up, holographic screens popping up into the air with wires snaking out and connecting themselves to the mechanical creatures.

"Time to get to work."

_HELLO! How Y'all doin? I would like to say how AWESOME it is to be back and working on The Wanderer again. You see, I was out of town for about a week and a half to visit some family back in my hometown, and then when I got back, I only had a few days to get ready before I started College. Yup, that's right! I'm a college student now! It's been two weeks since I started, and I now also have my schedule for classes down pat and will have time to post more, hopefully. Next time I'm going to make a note to post in case I can't post another chapter because...Well the most realistic reason would be I'm held up by schoolwork. Hope you all enjoy, and I will have the next chapter out soon. And I promise, it's going to be very interesting._

_P.S. Yes, I looked up the definition of astrology. Mallory is the learning type. However it's the type of learning that is opposite to mine which makes her one of my more unique characters. So I wanted to be clear, I am not that smart XD This is research that I do in order to bring out the best of Mallory's intelligence because honestly I love her character and want to show the best I can of her attributes. If I do have the facts wrong however, please, let me know. I don't want to be inaccurate. _


	17. Chapter fourteen

Neil huddled in the corner of his cell. Well it didn't really look like a cell, it was more like a tiny bedroom. A single bed rested against the wall across from him, his feet would barely graze the end of it when he slept. A tiny window as big as a 7x8 picture frame that he couldn't even see out of because he was too short. The walls and floor was white and sparkling, not a single spot to be found. He could see his reflection so perfectly in the floor. His blonde hair was messy and dirty, his eyes had black rings around them and were filled with sadness and fear. His clothes torn and his shoes were missing. He had cuts here and there, and dried blood going down his arm. All from the torture that he endured for three days. All for Mallory.

Neil didn't know where he was, he just knew why he was there and it was because of Mallory. But he didn't hold any resentment towards the older girl. He knew that she had no control over what was happening right now, and he knew she was going to come save him. But there was one obstacle in the way of that, and he knew it. It was HER.

The one who brought him here, the one who was torturing him, the one who demanded to know everything about everything when it came to Mallory, number 104. She was the reason he was so far from home. She was the reason he was in so much pain. These past three days she's beaten him, injected him with some weird type of poison that his body fought against desperately, and had even threatened to kill his grandpa, to which he responded with. "Then you lose any chance of learning anything from me!" Neil fought with all his strength against the torture. He knew what would happen if he said anything. But then again, he couldn't even answer any of her questions.

"Where is the rest of the rebellion?"

"What turned Six against the Father?"

"What happened to her power?"

"Where is the beast?"

To which he would answer, "I don't know" which was the truth, or he wouldn't say anything at all. But this did shed some light on some questions he had. Mallory was a traitor of some sort. This place was somewhere she used to be. But all of this also raised more questions. What rebellion? Who was the Father? What did 104 mean by, "The Beast?" Neil didn't know, but once Mallory came to get him, he would try as hard as he could to get the answers. He felt he deserved that much by this point. But first he had to make it out of here alive.

Neil lifted his head at the sound of the door being unlocked. He glared at the figure in the doorway who only laughed. "A glare? Look who's forming hatred." 104 stepped in, a whip in her hands. "Interesting." she swung her arm and the whip shot out, wrapping itself around his arms and torso. 104 pressed a button on the handle and an electric wave traveled down the whip and engulfed his body. Neil screamed in pain as his body tensed up, everything flashing around him. 104 laughed a bit and pressed the button again, the electricity fading. Neil gasped heavily, his body twitching, drool trailing down his chin and his eyes wide. 104 laughed harder and he slowly turned his head to look at her, her laughter turning into a smirk. "And the fun begins!" she hissed.


End file.
